Wetlands & Waterfowl's Guide to North American Waterfowl:
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American Bittern
American Widgeon
Black- Crowned Night Heron
Black Duck
Blue-Winged Teal
Canada Goose
Canvasback
Cattle Egret
Common Egret
Cinnamon Teal
Gadwall
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Green-Winged Teal
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Mallard
Mute Swan
Northern Pintail
Northern Shoveler
Redhead
Ring-Necked
Snowy Egret
Snow Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Wood Duck
Mallard
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Scientific Name: Anas platyrhnchos

Habitat: marshes, lakes, parks and swamps


Appearance: Male: 20-28" long. Green glossy head; yellow bill; chestnut breast;blue wing patch bordered with 2 white stripes. Female: 20-28" long. Sandy brown head; mottled orange bill; blue wing patch bordered with 2 white stripes; pale tail feathers


Food: Seeds, snails, insects, fish eggs and small fish


Nesting: Nest is a down-lined hollow of grass and stems hidden in vegetation close to water source. Eggs are pale green or white, 5-14 eggs per clutch, female incubates eggs 26-29 days. Young are downy, leave nest after hatching, first fly at 8 weeks.

The Mallard is probably the best known and most abundant wild duck in the northern hemisphere . The Mallard has been readily domesticated because of its palatable flesh and is the ancestor of most every breed of domestic duck. Completely circumpolar, the the wild Mallard breeds accross much of Asia and Europe, and some flocks in these regions winter as far south as Africa and India. In North America,The Mallard summers across most of Canada and the United States, and its winter range extends far into Central America.

Additional Photographs:
Larger Version of the above Mallards
Mallard hen and ducklings
Mallard Drakes
Malard Drake Flying
Mallard Drake Taking Off
Mallard Drakes Flying
Mallard Drake Taking Off
Mallard Hen and Ducklings feeding
Three Mallard Drakes