Mallard Duck | Anatomy, Description, Migration, Facts & Diet
What is a Mallard Duck?
When most people think of ducks, they think of mallards. The mallard is a common duck found mainly in North America, Europe, and Asia. Mallards are also found in Central America, Australia and New Zealand. The scientific name of mallard is Anas Platyrhynchos. It is part of the snout duck. Wild ducks love water and are often found near rivers, ponds or other bodies of water.
What do Mallard Duck look like?
The mallard will be about 2 feet long and weigh about 2 ½ pounds. The female mallard has tanned feathers all over the body while the male mallard has a green head, darker back and chest, and a white body. Some people actually breed domestic versions of mallards so that they have different colors.
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What do Mallard Duck eat?
Ducks are omnivores. This means they eat both plants and other animals. They mainly feed on the surface of the water, eating nuts, small fish, insects, frogs and fish eggs. They also enjoy eating certain types of human foods, usually grains from human cultures.
What sounds do Mallard Duck make?
The famous female mallard “quack”. When you grow up and know that ducks croak; it’s a mallard duck. Females quack to call other ducks, usually their own ducklings. This call is often referred to as a “hail call” or an “incremental call”. Ducklings can hear this call for miles.
Migration
Like many birds, mallards join flocks and migrate north to south during the winter, then north in the summer. This way, they are always in a warm place and have food available. These ducks can also adapt in other ways. They live well even when their natural habitat is taken over by humans. That doesn’t mean we should destroy their habitat, but so far, they haven’t been threatened by human interaction.
The Ducklings
Ducklings are called ducklings. A mother duck usually lays about ten eggs. She takes care of the eggs alone in a nest. As soon as the ducklings hatch from the eggs, the mother duck will lead them into the water. From then on, they often do not return to the nest.
Interesting Facts About Mallard Ducks
The male mallard is called a drake and the female is a hen.
Ducks can waddling, but they can fly pretty fast. At top speed, they can reach 70 miles per hour!
The mallard can fly almost vertically if necessary. This includes taking off from the water almost directly.
There are an estimated 10 million mallard ducks in North America.
A flock of ducks in flight is called a flock, but when they are above the water, the flock is called a flock.