This article is about the bird. For duck as a food, see Duck as food.

For
other uses, see Duck (disambiguation).

"Duckling" redirects here. For other uses, see Duckling (disambiguation).

Duck

Female Bufflehead
(Bucephala albeola)

Scientific
classification

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Order: Anserifor
mes

Superfa Anatoidea
mily:

Family: Anatidae

Subfamilies

See text

Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in

the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked
than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided
among several subfamilies, they are a form taxon; they do not represent
a monophyletic group (the group of all descendants of a single common
ancestral species), since swans and geese are not considered ducks.
Ducks are mostly aquatic birds, and may be found in both fresh water and
sea water.

Ducks are sometimes confused with several types of unrelated water birds
with similar forms, such as loons or divers, grebes, gallinules and coots.

Etymology

The word duck comes from Old English dūce 'diver', a derivative of the
verb *dūcan 'to duck, bend down low as if to get under something, or
dive', because of the way many species in the dabbling duck group feed
by upending; compare with Dutch duiken and German tauchen 'to dive'.

Pacific black duck displaying the

characteristic upending "duck"

This word replaced Old English ened /ænid 'duck', possibly to avoid
confusion with other words, such as ende 'end' with similar forms. Other
Germanic languages still have similar words for duck, for example,
Dutch eend, German Ente and Norwegian and. The word ened /ænid was
inherited from Proto-Indo-
European; cf. Latin anas "duck", Lithuanian ántis 'duck', Ancient
Greek νῆσσα /νῆττα (nēssa /nētta) 'duck', and Sanskrit ātí 'water bird',
among others.

A duckling is a young duck in downy plumage [1] or baby duck,[2] but in the
food trade a young domestic duck which has just reached adult size and
bulk and its meat is still fully tender, is sometimes labelled as a duckling.

A male is called a drake and the female is called a duck, or

in ornithology a hen.[3][4]
 Male mallard.

Wood ducks.

Taxonomy

All ducks belong to the biological order Anseriformes, a group that

contains the ducks, geese and swans, as well as the screamers, and
the magpie goose.[5] All except the screamers belong to the biological
family Anatidae.[5] Within the family, ducks are split into a variety of
subfamilies and 'tribes'. The number and composition of these subfamilies
and tribes is the cause of considerable disagreement among taxonomists.
[5]
Some base their decisions on morphological characteristics, others on
shared behaviours or genetic studies.[6][7] The number of suggested
subfamilies containing ducks ranges from two to five. [8][9] The significant
level of hybridisation that occurs among wild ducks complicates efforts to
tease apart the relationships between various species. [9]

Mallard landing in approach

In most modern classifications, the so-called 'true ducks' belong to the

subfamily Anatinae, which is further split into a varying number of tribes.
 The largest of these, the Anatini, contains the 'dabbling' or 'river' ducks
[10]

– named for their method of feeding primarily at the surface of fresh

water.[11] The 'diving ducks', also named for their primary feeding method,
make up the tribe Aythyini.[12] The 'sea ducks' of the tribe Mergini are
diving ducks which specialise on fish and shellfish and spend a majority of
their lives in saltwater.[13] The tribe Oxyurini contains the 'stifftails', diving
ducks notable for their small size and stiff, upright tails. [14]

A number of other species called ducks are not considered to be 'true

ducks', and are typically placed in other subfamilies or tribes.
The whistling ducks are assigned either to a tribe (Dendrocygnini) in the
subfamily Anatinae or the subfamily Anserinae,[15] or to their own
subfamily (Dendrocygninae) or family (Dendrocyganidae). [9]
[16]
The freckled duck of Australia is either the sole member of the tribe
Stictonettini in the subfamily Anserinae,[15] or in its own family, the
Stictonettinae.[9] The shelducks make up the tribe Tadornini in the family
Anserinae in some classifications,[15] and their own subfamily, Tadorninae,
in others,[17] while the steamer ducks are either placed in the family
Anserinae in the tribe Tachyerini[15] or lumped with the shelducks in the
tribe Tadorini.[9] The perching ducks make up in the tribe Cairinini in the
subfamily Anserinae in some classifications, while that tribe is eliminated
in other classifications and its members assigned to the tribe Anatini.
[9]
The torrent duck is generally included in the subfamily Anserinae in the
monotypic tribe Merganettini,[15] but is sometimes included in the tribe
Tadornini.[18] The pink-eared duck is sometimes included as a true duck
either in the tribe Anatini[15] or the tribe Malacorhynchini,[19] and other
times is included with the shelducks in the tribe Tadornini. [15]

Morphology

Male Mandarin duck

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The overall body plan of ducks is elongated and broad, and they are also
relatively long-necked, albeit not as long-necked as the geese and swans.
The body shape of diving ducks varies somewhat from this in being more
rounded. The bill is usually broad and contains serrated pectens, which
are particularly well defined in the filter-feeding species. In the case of
some fishing species the bill is long and strongly serrated. The scaled legs
are strong and well developed, and generally set far back on the body,
more so in the highly aquatic species, which typically feature webbed feet.
The wings are very strong and are generally short and pointed, and
the flight of ducks requires fast continuous strokes, requiring in turn
strong wing muscles. Three species of steamer duck are almost flightless,
however. Many species of duck are temporarily flightless while moulting;
they seek out protected habitat with good food supplies during this period.
This moult typically precedes migration.

The drakes of northern species often have extravagant plumage, but that
is moulted in summer to give a more female-like appearance, the
"eclipse" plumage. Southern resident species typically show less sexual
dimorphism, although there are exceptions such as the paradise
shelduck of New Zealand, which is both strikingly sexually dimorphic and
in which the female's plumage is brighter than that of the male. The
plumage of juvenile birds generally resembles that of the female. Female
ducks have evolved to have a corkscrew shaped vagina to prevent forced
copulations.[20]

Distribution and habitat

See also: List of Anseriformes by population

Flying steamer ducks in Ushuaia, Argentina

Ducks have a cosmopolitan distribution, and are found on every continent

except Antarctica.[5] Several species manage to live on subantarctic
islands, including South Georgia and the Auckland Islands.[21] Ducks have
reached a number of isolated oceanic islands, including the Hawaiian
Islands, Micronesia and the Galápagos Islands, where they are
often vagrants and less often residents.[22][23] A handful are endemic to
such far-flung islands.[22]

Female mallard in Cornwall, England

Some duck species, mainly those breeding in the temperate and Arctic
Northern Hemisphere, are migratory; those in the tropics are generally
not. Some ducks, particularly in Australia where rainfall is erratic, are
nomadic, seeking out the temporary lakes and pools that form after
localised heavy rain.[24]

Behaviour

Feeding

Pecten along the billMallard duckling

preeningFamily of ducks preening

Ducks eat food sources such as grasses, aquatic plants, fish, insects, small
amphibians, worms, and small molluscs.

Dabbling ducks feed on the surface of water or on land, or as deep as they

can reach by up-ending without completely submerging. [25] Along the edge
of the bill, there is a comb-like structure called a pecten. This strains the
water squirting from the side of the bill and traps any food. The pecten is
also used to preen feathers and to hold slippery food items.

Diving ducks and sea ducks forage deep underwater. To be able to

submerge more easily, the diving ducks are heavier than dabbling ducks,
and therefore have more difficulty taking off to fly.

A few specialized species such as the mergansers are adapted to catch

and swallow large fish.
The others have the characteristic wide flat bill adapted to dredging-type
jobs such as pulling up waterweed, pulling worms and small molluscs out
of mud, searching for insect larvae, and bulk jobs such as dredging out,
holding, turning head first, and swallowing a squirming frog. To avoid
injury when digging into sediment it has no cere, but the nostrils come out
through hard horn.

The Guardian published an article advising that ducks should not be fed
with bread because it damages the health of the ducks and pollutes
waterways.[26]

Breeding

A Muscovy duckling

Ducks generally only have one partner at a time, although the partnership
usually only lasts one year.[27] Larger species and the more sedentary
species (like fast-river specialists) tend to have pair-bonds that last
numerous years.[28] Most duck species breed once a year, choosing to do
so in favourable conditions (spring/summer or wet seasons). Ducks also
tend to make a nest before breeding, and, after hatching, lead their
ducklings to water. Mother ducks are very caring and protective of their
young, but may abandon some of their ducklings if they are physically
stuck in an area they cannot get out of (such as nesting in an
enclosed courtyard) or are not prospering due to genetic defects or
sickness brought about by hypothermia, starvation, or disease. Ducklings
can also be orphaned by inconsistent late hatching where a few eggs
hatch after the mother has abandoned the nest and led her ducklings to
water.[29]

Communication

Female mallard ducks (as well as several other species in the genus Anas,
such as the American and Pacific black ducks, spot-billed duck, northern
pintail and common teal) make the classic "quack" sound while males
make a similar but raspier sound that is sometimes written as "breeeeze",
[30][self-published source?]
but, despite widespread misconceptions, most species of
duck do not "quack".[31] In general, ducks make a range of calls, including
whistles, cooing, yodels and grunts. For example, the scaup – which
are diving ducks – make a noise like "scaup" (hence their name). Calls
may be loud displaying calls or quieter contact calls.

A common urban legend claims that duck quacks do not echo; however,
this has been proven to be false. This myth was first debunked by the
Acoustics Research Centre at the University of Salford in 2003 as part of
the British Association's Festival of Science.[32] It was also debunked in one
of the earlier episodes of the popular Discovery Channel television
show MythBusters.[33]

Predators

Ringed teal

Ducks have many predators. Ducklings are particularly vulnerable, since

their inability to fly makes them easy prey not only for predatory birds but
also for large fish like pike, crocodilians, predatory testudines such as
the alligator snapping turtle, and other aquatic hunters, including fish-
eating birds such as herons. Ducks' nests are raided by land-based
predators, and brooding females may be caught unaware on the nest by
mammals, such as foxes, or large birds, such as hawks or owls.

Adult ducks are fast fliers, but may be caught on the water by large
aquatic predators including big fish such as the North
American muskie and the European pike. In flight, ducks are safe from all
but a few predators such as humans and the peregrine falcon, which uses
its speed and strength to catch ducks.

Relationship with humans

Hunting

Main article: Waterfowl hunting

Humans have hunted ducks since prehistoric times. Excavations

of middens in California dating to 7800 – 6400 BP have turned up bones of
ducks, including at least one now-extinct flightless specie

 American Ornithologists' Union (1998). Checklist of North American

Birds (PDF). Washington, DC: American Ornithologists'
 Union. ISBN 978-1-891276-00-2. Archived (PDF) from the original
on 2022-10-09.

 Carboneras, Carlos (1992). del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew;

Sargatal, Jordi (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 1:
Ostrich to Ducks. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-84-87334-10-
8.

 Christidis, Les; Boles, Walter E., eds. (2008). Systematics and

Taxonomy of Australian Birds. Collingwood, VIC: Csiro
Publishing. ISBN 978-0-643-06511-6.

 Donne-Goussé, Carole; Laudet, Vincent; Hänni, Catherine (July

2002). "A molecular phylogeny of Anseriformes based on
mitochondrial DNA analysis". Molecular Phylogenetics and
Evolution. 23 (3): 339–356. Bibcode:2002MolPE..23..339D. do
i:10.1016/S1055-7903(02)00019-2. PMID 12099792.

 Elphick, Chris; Dunning, John B. Jr.; Sibley, David, eds. (2001). The
Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behaviour. London: Christopher
Helm. ISBN 978-0-7136-6250-4.

 Erlandson, Jon M. (1994). Early Hunter-Gatherers of the California

Coast. New York, NY: Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-
1-4419-3231-0.

 Fieldhouse, Paul (2002). Food, Feasts, and Faith: An Encyclopedia of

Food Culture in World Religions. Vol. I: A–K. Santa Barbara: ABC-
CLIO. ISBN 978-1-61069-412-4.

 Fitter, Julian; Fitter, Daniel; Hosking, David (2000). Wildlife of the

Galápagos. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-
691-10295-5.

 Higman, B. W. (2012). How Food Made History. Chichester, UK: John

Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-4051-8947-7.

 Hume, Julian H. (2012). Extinct Birds. London: Christopher

Helm. ISBN 978-1-4729-3744-5.

 Jeffries, Richard (2008). Holocene Hunter-Gatherers of the Lower

Ohio River Valley. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama
Press. ISBN 978-0-8173-1658-7.

 Kear, Janet, ed. (2005). Ducks, Geese and Swans: Species Accounts
(Cairina to Mergus). Bird Families of the World. Oxford: Oxford
University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-861009-0.
  Livezey, Bradley C. (October 1986). "A phylogenetic analysis of
recent Anseriform genera using morphological
characters" (PDF). The Auk. 103 (4): 737–
754. doi:10.1093/auk/103.4.737. Archived (PDF) from the original
on 2022-10-09.

 Madsen, Cort S.; McHugh, Kevin P.; de Kloet, Siwo R. (July 1988). "A
partial classification of waterfowl (Anatidae) based on single-copy
DNA" (PDF). The Auk. 105 (3): 452–
459. doi:10.1093/auk/105.3.452. Archived (PDF) from the original
on 2022-10-09.

 Maisels, Charles Keith (1999). Early Civilizations of the Old World.

London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-10975-8.

 Pratt, H. Douglas; Bruner, Phillip L.; Berrett, Delwyn G. (1987). A

Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific. Princeton,
NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-02399-9.

 Rau, Charles (1876). Early Man in Europe. New York: Harper &
Brothers. LCCN 05040168.

 Shirihai, Hadoram (2008). A Complete Guide to Antarctic Wildlife.

Princeton, NJ, US: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-
13666-0.

 Sued-Badillo, Jalil (2003). Autochthonous Societies. General History

of the Caribbean. Paris: UNESCO. ISBN 978-92-3-103832-7.

 Thorpe, I. J. (1996). The Origins of Agriculture in Europe. New York:

Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-08009-5.

External links

Duckat Wikipedia's sister projects

 Definitions from Wiktionary

 Media from Commons

 Quotations from Wikiquote

 Recipes from Wikibooks

 Taxa from Wikispecies

 Data from Wikidata

  list of books (useful looking abstracts)

 Ducks on postage stamps Archived 2013-05-13 at the Wayback

Machine

 Ducks at a Distance, by Rob Hines at Project Gutenberg - A modern

many languages, possibly because ducks are seen as silly in their looks or
behavior. Of the many ducks in fiction, many are cartoon characters, such
as Walt Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the
Duck started as a comic book character in 1973[54][55] and was made into
a movie in 1986. many languages, possibly because ducks are seen as
silly in their looks or behavior. Of the many ducks in fiction, many are
cartoon characters, such as Walt Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner
Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the Duck started as a comic book character in
1973[54][55] and was made into a movie in 1986. many languages, possibly
because ducks are seen as silly in their looks or behavior. Of the
many ducks in fiction, many are cartoon characters, such as Walt
Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the
Duck started as a comic book character in 1973[54][55] and was made into
a movie in 1986. many languages, possibly because ducks are seen as
silly in their looks or behavior. Of the many ducks in fiction, many are
cartoon characters, such as Walt Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner
Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the Duck started as a comic book character in
1973[54][55] and was made into a movie in 1986. many languages, possibly
because ducks are seen as silly in their looks or behavior. Of the
many ducks in fiction, many are cartoon characters, such as Walt
Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the
Duck started as a comic book character in 1973[54][55] and was made into
a movie in 1986. many languages, possibly because ducks are seen as
silly in their looks or behavior. Of the many ducks in fiction, many are
cartoon characters, such as Walt Disney's Donald Duck, and Warner
Bros.' Daffy Duck. Howard the Duck started as a comic book character in
1973[54][55] and was made into a movie in 1986.