Mandarin and wood Duck Compatability

[CTBirdGirl]

I have 4 pairs of Mandarins. 3 pairs are bonded although 1 seems uncertain if they’ll remain so this year as the hen is trying her hardest to pair with a young juvenile I bought this past summer rather than her mate from last year. I feel that’s important to note since I have at least 2 and possibly 4 unpaired individual mandarins (at this point in time).

My question is how likely/possible is it that a silver wood duck pair I just ordered will wind up splitting and actually pairing with a mandarin instead? I know their eggs would not be fertile but for those of you who keep both species together how common is it that a mandarin chooses a wood duck as their mate (or the other way around?). Do they ‘prefer’ their own species or truly appreciate no difference between themselves?

 

[MGG]

I have 4 pairs of Mandarins. 3 pairs are bonded although 1 seems uncertain if they’ll remain so this year as the hen is trying her hardest to pair with a young juvenile I bought this past summer rather than her mate from last year. I feel that’s important to note since I have at least 2 and possibly 4 unpaired individual mandarins (at this point in time).

My question is how likely/possible is it that a silver wood duck pair I just ordered will wind up splitting and actually pairing with a mandarin instead? I know their eggs would not be fertile but for those of you who keep both species together how common is it that a mandarin chooses a wood duck as their mate (or the other way around?). Do they ‘prefer’ their own species or truly appreciate no difference between themselves?

They usually stay with their own species. I've got quite a few of both and they've never paid any attention to each other. You should be fine. With your Mandarins that aren't paired up correctly, if you can, separating the two together that you want paired up for a while works pretty well. Just make sure if you do that that they can't hear or see the other birds.

 

[CTBirdGirl]

So I went ahead and got the Wood Duck pair and one of my well established Mandarin hens is in fact allowing the Wood Duck to mate with her - leaving her previous Mandarin drake solo. The Wood Duck hen seems to have absolutely no issue with her drake mating with the mandarin so they have formed a trio. I am now concerned that although I’ve read that due to chromosomal discrepancy hybrids can’t result from a wood duck:mandarin pairing I’ll be the first one with them……wishing I’d stuck with only the mandarins.

 

[MGG]

So I went ahead and got the Wood Duck pair and one of my well established Mandarin hens is in fact allowing the Wood Duck to mate with her - leaving her previous Mandarin drake solo. The Wood Duck hen seems to have absolutely no issue with her drake mating with the mandarin so they have formed a trio. I am now concerned that although I’ve read that due to chromosomal discrepancy hybrids can’t result from a wood duck:mandarin pairing I’ll be the first one with them……wishing I’d stuck with only the mandarins.

It's not possible for them to hybridize. It's very odd that the wood duck drake is actually breeding your hen but nothing will come of it. And if something ever would come of it you'd be the only one with a documented hybrid in the world, haha!
I would take an actual hybrid over a pure wood duck or Mandarin hands down. That bird would be worth a crap ton of money.

 

[hawg boss]

I have a Wood Duck hen that tries to mate with many species and females of other species. I have seen her mate with a Northern Pintail and she produced one Pintail/Wood Duck cross in all the years I have had her. All of her other babies have been pure Wood Duck.