Black Swedish duck??

Wow - thanks! I did not think of a domestic duck, but it certainly looks like it - see below pic I found on the internet compared to the first one I posted above - the white bib looks identical. The internet says they are "hardy", and "good foragers", which might explain why they are surviving in the wild. The only thing that does not appear to match is the broad tail. Perhaps the ones I saw are domestic/wild hybrids? Very appreciative of the info.

Jackie

I wonder if someone around there may have raised a couple? I saw online that you can buy them to raise.

It is sort of a bird sanctuary, and there are all sorts of ducks, geese, egrets, herons, cormorants, hawks, and smaller birds, of course. We have even seen Western Bluebirds there twice. So, if someone had these ducks and wanted to release them, this would be the perfect place. I have a vague memory of seeing a strikingly black & white family of ducks 2-3 years ago - a pair of adults, and at least 5 ducklings, all black & white. So maybe that's what happened.

We went for a bike ride there again this morning, and saw this threesome again. The ducklings look darker already - I will keep an eye on them.

Jackie

It sounds like a wonderful place!

Update - we saw the mother and 2 ducklings again today - the ducklings are a little bigger, and both of them are completely black & white just like the duck. Also, I think this may be the answer to an interesting phenomenon we have noticed in the local mallard flock (20-30 ducks, depending). Over about the last 5 years, drakes have appeared which look like mallards, except that they have identical large white patches on their chests. They have increased from one at first. Today I counted 4 of them. Perhaps the released Black Swedish Ducks have joined the mallards, and produced hybrids?

Jackie

Hmmm....that's interesting! I don't know if ducks interbreed. Maybe someone here does. Actually, I just did a search and it sounds like Mallard males will breed with just about anything! haha I guess all domestic ducks have come from Mallards. One person on a poultry forum said that she had a mallard mate with a Muscovy duck (which is not a Mallard-derived duck) and it was like a horse mating with a donkey and produced a sterile "mule duck". This is probably too much info.....but the bottom line is it's quite possible that the Mallards are mating with the Black Swedish ducks there.

My brother is a bird person. He saw the diving tail on my ducks, and the body being more of a dabbling duck. He said they do interbreed, and called this one a "franken duck". In any event, they are happy in our bird sanctuary.

Jackie

lol.........a franken duck. Oh well, they're still pretty. :)