Mallard
Anas platyrhynchos
The Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is a common ducks, swans, and geese found in 156 countries, weighing about 843 g. The mallard or wild duck is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa.
About the Mallard
The mallard or wild duck is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, the Falkland Islands, and South Africa. Belonging to the subfamily Anatinae of the waterfowl family Anatidae, mallards live in wetlands, eat water plants and small animals, and are social animals preferring to congregate in groups or flocks of varying sizes.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The mallard is a medium-sized waterfowl species that is often slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks. It is 50–65 cm (20–26 in) long – of which the body makes up around two-thirds – has a wingspan of 81–98 cm (32–39 in), and weighs 0.7–1.6 kg (1.5–3.5 lb). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 25.7 to 30.6 cm (10.1 to 12.0 in), the bill is 4.4 to 6.1 cm (1.7 to 2.4 in), and the tarsus is 4.1 to 4.8 cm (1.6 to 1.9 in). Voice: A noisy species, the female has the deep quack stereotypically associated with ducks. The female will often call with a sequence of 2–10 quacks in a row, starting loud and with the volume gradually decreasing. Male mallards make a sound phonetically similar to that of the female, a typical quack, but it is deeper and quieter compared to that of the female.
What the Mallard sounds like
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Mauritania, Kenya, Caribbean Netherlands, Jamaica, Martinique, Gibraltar, Guam, Paraguay, San Marino, New Caledonia.
When to see it
The Mallard can be seen all year round, with peak activity in May. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Mallard?
- The mallard is a medium-sized waterfowl species that is often slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Mallard?
- The Mallard is a large sized bird weighing about 843 g.
- Where can you see a Mallard?
- The Mallard occurs in 156 countries, including the United States, Canada, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Norway.
- What does a Mallard sound like?
- You can listen to 3 field recordings of the Mallard on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Mallard?
- The Mallard is most easily confused with the Green-winged Teal, the Northern Pintail and the American Black Duck.
- Is the Mallard endangered?
- The Mallard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Mallard for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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