Mallard Ducks are by far the most common and well known of all ducks on earth. Though heavily hunted, Mallards are abundant from North America, Europe, to Asia.


Appearance:
Males or drakes, have a distinctive iridescent green head, white neck ring, and a bright yellow bill. Male Mallards have a dark brown chest and a lighter coloring on the rest of the body though a blue marking is visible on the lower wing. Female Mallards lack the green head and are more heavily patterned with a light cream body, black stripes, and the same recognizable blue spot. Their bill is darker, though occasionally will be a vibrant orange. Both sexes have bright orange feet.

Description: Mallard Ducks live a lifespan of 5 to 10 years. Mallards have a wingspan of approximately 6 ft and are 26 inches in length. They can weigh between 2-3 lbs.

Feeding: Mallard Ducks are omnivores typically diving for food while at a pond or lake. They’ll dive for small fish and wild seed. They’ll also eat insects and occasional bread crumbs fed to them by human observers.

Range and Habitat: Mallards are found mainly in North America, Central America, Asia, and Europe. They prefer calm freshwater wetlands as habitat. Swamps, ponds, lakes, rivers, city parks, streams, and coastal.

Nesting: Female Ducks will lay 5 to 14 eggs which will be incubated for 30 Days. The mother will stay with ducklings and lead them to nearby water.

Photo on the Left: Male Mallard Duck. Center Photo: Female Mallard Duck. Left Photo: Mallard Ducklings