Rouen or mallard?

[dailyduck]

So we recently purchased some young duckling labeled as mallard and Pekin Ducks about 2-3 months ago. As they have grown I have had a hard time deciding if the "mallard" is actually a mallard. I read on other forums that Rouen ducks usually have 2 lines on their face and mallard only have one line through their eye. From a young age he's always had a bold stripe through his eye and almost a start of a line under but not quite their. I think he is a mallard but here are some pictures to get your opinions...

 

[sourland]

Body type says Rouen, and in size it appears to be as large as the Pekin which would also indicate Rouen to me.

 

[dailyduck]

Thank you very much. I knew he was much bigger than the average mallard but his second line under his eye never fully connected or darkened.

 

[eldridgebrood]

Id say rouen based on size, however I'm no pro lol, I'm fairly new to ducks... but isn't that a female though?

 

[JadeComputerGal]

Thank you very much. I knew he was much bigger than the average mallard but his second line under his eye never fully connected or darkened.

I agree with the others that it's a Rouen. It looks much too large for a Mallard. People often confuse them as ducklings. Even at our feed store when they sell ducklings in the spring, many of the people who work there call the Rouens Mallards. I politely correct them every time I hear this because I can't stand the thought of people thinking they're getting one when it's really the other. If I thought I was buying a 3 pound bird that ended up being a 10 pound bird, I would be unhappy, and so would the people at the store I bought them from. Not sure where you're located, but many areas require a back toe to be clipped after hatching in domestic Mallards to distinguish them from wild ones.

I've heard that same thing about eye stripes but have no idea where it came from. Maybe just an old wives tale, and I can assure you it's not a reliable indicator of breed. This is a pic of my male Rouen (middle duck).

 

[dailyduck]

I agree with the others that it's a Rouen. It looks much too large for a Mallard. People often confuse them as ducklings. Even at our feed store when they sell ducklings in the spring, many of the people who work there call the Rouens Mallards. I politely correct them every time I hear this because I can't stand the thought of people thinking they're getting one when it's really the other. If I thought I was buying a 3 pound bird that ended up being a 10 pound bird, I would be unhappy, and so would the people at the store I bought them from. Not sure where you're located, but many areas require a back toe to be clipped after hatching in domestic Mallards to distinguish them from wild ones. I've heard that same thing about eye stripes but have no idea where it came from. Maybe just an old wives tale, and I can assure you it's not a reliable indicator of breed. This is a pic of my male Rouen (middle duck).

Thank you, I now know for sure that he is a Rouen but it sounds like he is for sure a male as well. He has such a quiet raspy voice almost no noise at all it's so quiet. Do make rouens not get the same iconic green head? Or do you have to wait for them to go through a molt to tell?

 

[sourland]

Drake colors will appear this fall when the young drakes enter their nuptial feathering.

 

[JadeComputerGal]

Thank you, I now know for sure that he is a Rouen but it sounds like he is for sure a male as well. He has such a quiet raspy voice almost no noise at all it's so quiet. Do make rouens not get the same iconic green head? Or do you have to wait for them to go through a molt to tell?

They molt into nuptial plumage, and that usually happens toward late summer/fall as Sourland said. They do this to attract the ladies! When it happens depends to some extent on the age of the drake and where you live. I have 4-month drakes that are already partly into nuptial plumage. I've seen them start to turn as early as 3 months, again though, depending when they were born and where you live.

 

[eldridgebrood]

They molt into nuptial plumage, and that usually happens toward late summer/fall as Sourland said. They do this to attract the ladies! When it happens depends to some extent on the age of the drake and where you live. I have 4-month drakes that are already partly into nuptial plumage. I've seen them start to turn as early as 3 months, again though, depending when they were born and where you live.

Wait! I've never been told they change?!?!
So my Doofy could still be male?? We got them as 2 week Olds in may so never would've gone through the nuptial plumage...& "She" has NEVER quacked which i thought was weird but all info i could find said males had the green head. How do we tell then if it is male or female until then??
Sorry, we're new to this ..lol

 

[JadeComputerGal]

Wait! I've never been told they change?!?!
So my Doofy could still be male?? We got them as 2 week Olds in may so never would've gone through the nuptial plumage...& "She" has NEVER quacked which i thought was weird but all info i could find said males had the green head. How do we tell then if it is male or female until then??
Sorry, we're new to this ..lol

No reason to be sorry, dear. We were all new at one time. I wish I'd had such an easy way to ask others back then.

If it's a raspy call, it sounds like a drake. If it's not yet in nuptial plumage, you can watch for signs of a drake in the ones you've mentioned. Best thing you can do now if it doesn't have at least one sex feather (drake feather) is to look for hints of green on the head in the bright sunlight. That's where you'll start seeing it, and you often can't see it in the beginning unless they're in bright light.