Appleyards and/or Anconas?

[Birdcrazy]

I'm able to get both, or one or the other..
What kinds of ducks are they? In relative to egg production (not overly fussy), noise, temperement, are they good broodies? Good farm ducks? Any information or photos would be great - I dont know anything about them but there are breeders very close to me, and as I want more ducks, anyone breeding ducks close to me is great! I don't usually hear of any breeders/hatcheries this side of Australia..
Thanks

 

[NYRIR]

Hi,
I have Anconas. They are very adorable ducks and easy to distinguish because of the different markings on each one.I cannot by experience tell you how well they lay because3 mine are too young yet.What I CAN tell you is they seem relatively quiet and are very nice ducks

I love mine

 

[Birdcrazy]

Yes I've seen the variations of markings, they're gorgeous

do you know if they are seasonal layers though?

 

[NYRIR]

Anconas average 210-280 eggs a year and mothering ability is fair-good, according to holderreads book. Cayugas lay 100-150 a year and mothering ability is Fair-good...and Rouen lay 35-125 eggs a season and mothering ability is poor-good.
So I would say if those are the three breeds...and you want eggs...Anconas win Campbells are even better at 250-340 with a mothering ability of poor -fair . At least according to this chart I'm looking at.
Don't know if this matters to you for your choices but Anconas are also endangered whereas Campbells are listed as fairly common.Rouen are common....Cayugas also common...Pekins are ...of course...Abundant!
Hook Bills are endangered as well and lay 100-125 eggs a season...with a fair-good mothering ability.
Probably more info than you wanted...sorry...tend to go on and on sometimes

Hope it helps you decide

Here are my Anconas...but don't go by size comparison of them to the Pekins in the pick...they are a lot younger

 

[Birdcrazy]

Wow they're gorgeous!! And no, I really apreciate all the info!

I have a muscovy hen that I used to collect eggs off for us and my relatives/friends, but she's mostly broody these days.
Are the girls very loud? Or not too bad for a quacking duck?

 

[exop]

Wow, Anconas in Australia???

I wonder if the breed has survived there for years, or if birds were imported from Dave Holderread in America. It would be very interesting to know. Can you ask your friend where their ducks came from (ie. what other breeder in Australia), we may be able to trace the chain of custody back and find out for sure one way or the other.

I'm excited, because all the Anconas in America originate from a very few ducks that waterfowl breeder Dave Holderread was able to locate in the UK. It was something crazy, like either 2 or 3 ducks total. I've since looked for evidence that any Anconas are still raised in the UK, and have not been able to find any.

If Anconas were imported to Australia from the UK before they almost went extinct in their home country, that would mean a lot for the breed's gene pool.

Best - exop

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

Quote:
I am also interested in this...I know that todays animal importation confinement is like 6 months in australia (maybe just for dogs)-so you would have to be really committed to bringing something in and it would have to be an adult bird... I have no idea if the animal quarantine was that bad 40 years ago though. Like Exop said, the larger gene pool would really mean a lot to us here in the states... though importing from australia (instead of the reverse) would make more sense for further breeding since the 6 month quarantine would waylay things.

 

[rainy day ducks]

I have never owned Anconas but currently have 7 Appleyards. Out of all the duck breeds I have, Appleyards and Dutch Hookbills are my favorite. So far this year, I have gotten an average of 150 eggs per Appleyard duck already in this calendar year and it is only June 6th! Everytime they see me, the greet me with quacks. They talk in the presence of humans or other animals but I would not consider them noisy. They are calm and eat out of my hand. They also LOVE slugs! I have seen them eat big banana slugs with pleasure. Banana slugs can get 5-6 inches long and almost 1 inch wide.

Appleyard eggs are wonderful. They break evenly and are larger than a jumbo chicken egg. I enjoy their eggs the best over the other breeds.

Appleyards are great farm ducks. They are calm and mine are real good with visiting children. They have a calm temperment and are very personable. If you choose this breed, you will not be disappointed! As long as I have ducks, I will always have Appleyards. I will post some pictures soon!

 

[NYRIR]

Quote:
Thank you...they are rather cute

I don't think they are any louder than any other of my ducks but it can be hard to distinguish who is quacking over the geese honking

 

[duckyfromoz]

Quote:
I have only heard of one breeder down here in the southern state of Victoria - Birdcrazy- I cant remember where you are from but for some reason I am thinking Queensland or Western Australia. The person I have heard of has bred the birds from scratch. Not too sure about the breeding behind the birds and what has been used either though. Anconas are VERY rare here- and I was surprised to hear anyone being offered any- Birdcrazy...take the anconas if you can get some and help to spread the genes around is my advice. They are a gorgeous duck- and its a pity that they are just so hard to come by here.