Bird Watching: Muscovy, 1 by duckmother

duckmother wrote:
Marilyn, Pekins are the white ducks...yes, if you have ever eaten Peking duck, you either ate a Pekin or a Muscovy or a mix of the two. Both ducks grow quickly and (I am told) very tasty. I feed all of the ducks and most think that I am the "feeding lady" and sit with me and eat out of my hand, etc. However, I did not put them in the wild and try to discourage people from doing so. They most likely will be killed within 3 years. On a farm or as a pet, they will live at least 7 years. Some domestic breeds live 20 years+.

Most ducks will mate with other ducks, no matter the kind. It is more common place when there is a lot of domestics in a small area. Buttercup may mate with a different breed of duck but right now, he just wants a date. lol He wants to dominate a female...even though she will end up being the boss. The other (older) male Muscovy, will not let Buttercup near the other two females.

China was the first to domesticate the Mallard over 1000 years ago. Over time they became experts at raising, incubation, etc. and through these techniques the produced many types of ducks such as the Pekin. If you think of ducks like you do a rose. If you want to improve on one part of a rose such as smell you will lose something else such as size...well the same with ducks. Pekins grow fast, are about twice the size of a wild mallard, and have good meat. They lost their color and how to brood. This will not always happen but usually, the female will make a nest, may lay an egg or two, may even sit on the nest for a day to a week. Then she kind of, gets bored and leaves her nest. Well, it does not take long for something to nab it, bird, turtle, human, etc. So, you rarely see pekins with chicks. There are other white duck breeds and some make better Moms but none are as good as Muscovy Moms.

They will only leave the nest for short periods of time, keep their eggs warm, fan them if they get too hot, etc. If you know anyone that has ever gotten to close to Muscovy cheeks, they probably got flogged. I am lucky, the Muscovy Moms here will bring there chicks for me to see. Or, maybe, she just want me to duckling sit while she eats...either way, I love it.

A picture of 3 Pekin females, 1 Pekin male and 1 Khaki Campbell male,