Mallard
This article is about the Mallard duck, for info on the famous locomotive of the same name see Mallard (locomotive), or for the band called Mallard see Mallard (band)'
The Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is a common and widespread dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and sub-tropical areas of North America, Europe and Asia. It is probably the best-known of all ducks.
This dabbling duck is strongly migratory in the northern parts of its breeding range, and winters further south. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and will form large flocks.
The breeding male is unmistakable, with a green head, black rear end and a blue speculum edged with white, obvious in flight or at rest.
The females are light brown, with plumage much like most female dabbling ducks. They can be distinguished from other ducks, by the distinctive speculum.
In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake looks more like the female.
It is a bird of most wetlands, including parks and small ponds, and usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing. It nests on the ground, not always particularly near water.
This is a noisy species. The male has a nasal call, whereas the female has the very familiar "quack" always associated with ducks.
Mallards frequently interbreed with the American Black Duck, Northern Pintail and domesticated species, leading to various hybrids.
A hen mallard with ducklings
A mallard drake
Referenced By
American Black Duck | American Wigeon | Anas | Baldpate | Chinese Spotbill | Common Teal | Crozet pintail | Dabbling duck | Duck | Eaton's Pintail | Emmanuel College, Cambridge | Eurasian Wigeon | European Wigeon | Gadwall | Geographical isolation | Green-winged Teal | Inwood Hill Park | Laysan Duck | List of Birds of Santa Cruz County, California | List of British birds: Non-passerines | List of North American birds: non-passerines | List of bird species introduced to the Hawaiian Islands | North American birds | Northern Pintail | Northern Shoveler | Pintail | Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge | Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex | Shoveler | Speculum feathers | Spot-billed Duck | Spotbill | Statehood Quarter | The Broads National Park | Wigeon | Yellow-billed Duck
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