Ducks are birds.

Ducks are also called 'Waterfowl' because they are normally

found in places where there is water like ponds, streams and rivers. Ducks are
related to Geese and Swans. Ducks are sometimes confused with several types of
unrelated water birds with similar forms, such as loons (an aquatic bird found in
many parts of North America and northern Europe) or grebes (freshwater diving
birds) and coots (medium-sized water birds which are members of the Rail Bird
family).

Duck Characteristics

Ducks are smaller than than their relatives (swans and geese). Ducks also have
shorter necks and wings and a stout body.

A female duck is called a 'hen', they are

identified by their very-dull, brown feathers.
The females have dull-brown feathers so that
they can hide from enemies and predators.
They can also camouflage themselves in their
nests and also protect their young.

A male duck is called a 'drake', you can

identify the male duck by its brightly coloured
feathers. They use these coloured feathers to
attract the female ducks for mating. Here is a
beautifully coloured Drake with a purple
plumage, shiny green head colouring, silvery
white body and grey wings with blue
markings.

Ducks have webbed feet, which are designed

for swimming. Their webbed feet act like
paddles for the ducks. Because their feet are
webbed, they tend to 'waddle' instead of
walking straight. Ducks cannot feel the cold
in their feet even when swimming in icy cold
 water.

The reason for this is because their feet have no nerves or blood
vessels in them. The webbed feet are powerful and allow the
duck to swim rather fast.

A duck has water-proof feathers.

There is a special gland called the
'Preen Gland' near the ducks tail.
This tiny gland produces oil which
the duck uses to coat its feathers.

The duck picks up the oil with its head and beak, and then
smears it all over its body to make the outer feathers waterproof.
Without this protective barrier, a ducks feathers would become
water-logged and because they spend their whole lives around
and in water, this water-proof barrier is extremely important.
Beneath the water-proof coat are fluffy and soft feathers which
keep the duck warm.

The ducks mouth is called a beak or bill. It is

usually broad and flat and has rows of fine
notches along the edge called 'lamellae'. The
lamellae helps the duck to grip its food so that
it will not slip off.

However, ducks beak comes in different shapes and sizes. The shape of the beak
and body determines how the duck will hunt for its food.

Duck Behaviour
 Ducks keep clean by preening themselves.
Ducks do this by putting their heads in funny
positions and putting their beaks into their
body. Ducks preen themselves very often.
Preening also removes parasites, removes
scales which cover newly sprouting feathers
and also involves the removal of spreading oil
over clean feathers.

Duck Habitats

Many species of duck are temporarily flightless while moulting. Ducks seek out
protected habitats with a good food supply during this period. They usually moult
before migrating.

Ducks are found in wetlands, marshes, ponds, rivers, lakes and oceans. This is
because ducks love the water. Some species of ducks migrate or travel longs
distances every year to breed. Ducks usually travel to warmer areas or where the
water does not freeze so that they can rest and raise their young. The distance may
be thousands of miles away. Ducks are found everywhere in the world except the
Antarctica which is too cold for them.

Duck Life Span

Ducks can live from 2 - 20 years, depending on species and whether they are wild
ducks or ducks in captivity. Its a fact that a wild duck can live 20 years or more.
Domestic ducks typically live 10 - 15 years in captivity. The world record is a
Mallard Drake that lived to a ripe old age of 27 years.

Ducks and their feeding habits

Shovelers - these ducks have broad beaks and sift their food for insects, nails and
seed from the mud.

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. These ducks have long and narrow beaks. Their
narrow beaks are also covered with saw-like edges which help them to grab fish.
Dabbling ducks feed on the surface of water or on land, or as deep as they can
reach by up-ending without completely submerging. Their beaks are broad and
short. Dabbling ducks have tiny rows of plates along the inside of the beak called
'lamellae' like a whales baleen. These let them filter water out of the side of their
beaks and keep food inside. Dabbling ducks eat plants, seeds, grasses and other
small insects and animals that they find on or under the water. Usually they stick
their tails in the air and stretch their heads into the water to reach their food.

Dabblers usually have shiny coloured patches on their wings. The domestic ducks
are dabblers too. They are descendents of the Mallards. Dabbling ducks take off
from the water in quick jumps. Ducks with longer necks dive with their head down
into the shallow water and pick up their food.

The female duck builds her nest with grass or reeds or even in a hole in a tree.Once
the female lays 5 - 12 eggs, she will sit on her eggs to keep them warm so that they
can hatch into ducklings.

The eggs will hatch within 28 days normally,

except for the Muscovy duck which takes about
35 days to hatch. The mother duck will keep
her brood of ducklings together to protect them
from predators. Animals like the racoon,
turtles, hawks, large fish and snakes are a ducks
main predators and they will eat the ducklings.
Ducklings are able to fly within 5 - 8 weeks.
Their feathers develop very fast.

When the young are ready to fly, all the ducks will gather in flocks on large lakes,
marshes or the ocean to migrate to their wintering home. When the ducks fly, they
usually do so in a 'V-shaped' or a long line.

Interesting Duck Facts

• A hen makes a loud QUACK sound while the drake has a raspy, muffled
call.

• Touching a duckling does not prevent the mother duck from taking care of
it. It is however best to leave ducklings alone so as not to scare the mother
duck away or accidentally injure them.

• Ducks sleep with half their brains awake. Ducks are more likely to sleep
with one eye open when they are located on the edge of sleeping groups.
Ducks can detect predators in less than a second.

• Duck eggshells have tiny holes (pores) that allow it to breathe. A hen's eggs
can have 7500 pores, most found at the blunt end of the egg. Respiratory
gasses as well as water vapour travel through these pores allowing the egg to
breathe.

• Baby ducks are precocial meaning they are born with their eyes wide open,
with a warm layer of down and are not fully dependant on their parents for
food. Ducklings are ready to leave the nest within hours of hatching.

• A 'clutch' is the total number of eggs laid by one bird during one nesting
session. Clutch size affected by hereditary and environmental factors. When
food is abundant, birds lay more eggs.

• A brood is the total number of hatchlings, or ducklings in a clutch.

• Ducks have very good vision and they see in colour.