Transcript:

Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing mallards. “Mallard” could be in reference to any wild male duck, as that’s how it was originally used, but for this episode we’re focusing on a specific duck species. Mallards are likely the most recognized duck species on the planet and perhaps the most recognized waterfowl - though swans are pretty iconic, too. Mallards live on every continent except Antarctica, and they are predominately found throughout the northern hemisphere. These birds are closely associated with bodies of water like lakes, ponds, and rivers, however, they’re not typically found in coastal settings. Mallards can also be seen in ephemeral water pools like large floodplains or puddles and they’ll also take to agricultural fields for eating grains found there. Mallards are generalists meaning they eat a variety of foods. While they eat a lot of aquatic vegetation and seeds they’ll also take insects and other invertebrates, tadpoles, frogs, and sometimes even fish, though this is pretty rare. These ducks mostly feed off the surface of the water or go head first underwater to find food. This butt in the air position is known as dabbling. Mallards almost never dive completely underwater while searching for a meal.

Even baby mallards eat on their own from the moment they enter the water, which is only shortly after hatching. Mallards form pairs in the winter and remain together until the breeding season begins in spring. Depending on the birds and their location, some may migrate to warmer areas during the winter others remain in the same place year round. After mating, the male leaves the female to incubate her eggs on her own. A mallard’s nest is made up of grasses and down all pulled together from atop the nest and the female lays seven to fifteen eggs. These are incubated for just under a month and the babies leave within two days of hatching. It takes about two months before the ducklings are able to fly.

The iconic duck “quack” is made by the female mallard who uses this call to beckon her ducklings or other ducks to he; so that song about the daddy duck making bigger quacks than the mom and making all the little duck come running back from over the hills and far away is a load of bollocks. Male and female mallards are an excellent example of sexual dimorphism which is when the sexes of animals appear different from each other. Both have bright blue on their wings - which can help to distinguish them from other waterfowl - but females come in browns and grey while males have a bright green head, yellow bill, and curly black tail feathers. They’re some of the most abundant ducks in the world, too, with the population size believed to have increased over the past fifty years.

Mallards are adaptable as can be seen in many local parks where they gather for bread crumbs - which you shouldn’t give ducks, by the way. Some say they’ve basically domesticated themselves by flocking for human handouts, but they are believed to be the species from which nearly all modern domestic ducks are descended - except for muscovy ducks - they’re truly just an alien species altogether.

Predators to mallards include foxes, raccoons, large fish, turtles, snakes, birds, cats and more. In size mallards have a three foot wingspan and weigh about two and a half pounds - in the wild they can live to be more than 25 years old.

For more facts on mallards, check out the links in the description. Thank you to Ramilda for today’s request! Give a thumbs up if you learned something new today, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files!