Aztec Ducks!

[dheltzel]

How many generations does it take to recreate the blue pearl variety of Aztec agian? How have all of your hatches been? Do they still have issues do to breeding with calls, or did you remedy that? I am asking anybody.

So Porcelain and Blue Pearl in Aztecs works like Silverhead and Bluehead in Australian Spotted ducks, or Silver and blue in Swedish Ducks, or Splash and Blue in chickens.
2 Blue Pearls crossed to each other will produce (roughly) 25% Porcelain, 50% Blue Pearl and 25% wild type (greenheads, like a mallard).

Personally, I won't use Calls, or Mallards, they are too far from true Aztecs in either type (Calls) or size (Mallards). I am planning to use the very rare Silver Bantam ducks, commonly known here in the US as Mini Silver Appleyards. Those are identical in size and type to Aztecs, but they also have the snowy phenotype. I believe removing the harlequin genes, and possibly the dusky pattern genes, will be easier than fixing all the size/type issues. Plus, I might be able to produce Overberg bantam ducks also from that cross, if I can fix the harlequin and dusky genes into a new line.

 

[Chickenosauurs_RexNo54]

So Porcelain and Blue Pearl in Aztecs works like Silverhead and Bluehead in Australian Spotted ducks, or Silver and blue in Swedish Ducks, or Splash and Blue in chickens.
2 Blue Pearls crossed to each other will produce (roughly) 25% Porcelain, 50% Blue Pearl and 25% wild type (greenheads, like a mallard).

Personally, I won't use Calls, or Mallards, they are too far from true Aztecs in either type (Calls) or size (Mallards). I am planning to use the very rare Silver Bantam ducks, commonly known here in the US as Mini Silver Appleyards. Those are identical in size and type to Aztecs, but they also have the snowy phenotype. I believe removing the harlequin genes, and possibly the dusky pattern genes, will be easier than fixing all the size/type issues. Plus, I might be able to produce Overberg bantam ducks also from that cross, if I can fix the harlequin and dusky genes into a new line.

So there are three varieties of Aztec duck, and they act like the blue dilution gene. Maybe you coul make a few new varieties of Aztec duck with the harlequin and dusky pattern genes, maybe you could add them to the Porcelain and Blue pearl to make a unique bird. I do agree with you that calls are not the right type, and mallards are to big, but Silver bantams do look identical to Aztecs besides color.

 

[Pyxis]

I believe removing the harlequin genes, and possibly the dusky pattern genes, will be easier than fixing all the size/type issues.

Those are both recessive, so you'll be looking at a lot of test breeding to eliminate them. Every duckling in the first gen cross would carry the genes, and then when you get to the third generation, you'll need to breed all of the ducklings back out to snowy birds and to dusky birds to be able to determine which are carrying the genes you don't want. But as they say, build the barn before you paint it - structure first. I can see why you'd choose them to use.

So there are three varieties of Aztec duck, and they act like the blue dilution gene.

They ARE the blue dilution gene Blue pearl is genetically the exact same as Blue Fawn in Calls. Porcelain is the exact same as Pastel. It's either one copy of blue (Blue Pearl and Blue Fawn) or two copies of blue (Porcelain and Pastel).

That is the reason Calls are most commonly used when breeding out - the color genetics are the exact same if you pick blue fawns or pastels (or grays, since that's just the same color minus the blue gene). And then mallards of course are the same genetically color-wise as a gray Call, and have the sleeker body type.

Breeding out to Calls and mallards also kind of preserves the original genetics of the breed which is another reason they're used - the breed was created when Holderread bred wild mallards he hatched from eggs from an abandoned nest with Blue Bibbed Calls, and then went from there selecting the traits he liked best in the resulting ducklings.

But birds aren't treated like dogs - pedigree doesn't matter. If it looks like a breed, has all the traits of that breed, and breeds true, then it IS that breed, regardless of what it was crossed with in the past. So you can really use any breed as long as you get back to the traits of the original breed.

 

[Chickenosauurs_RexNo54]

Those are both recessive, so you'll be looking at a lot of test breeding to eliminate them. Every duckling in the first gen cross would carry the genes, and then when you get to the third generation, you'll need to breed all of the ducklings back out to snowy birds and to dusky birds to be able to determine which are carrying the genes you don't want. But as they say, build the barn before you paint it - structure first. I can see why you'd choose them to use.



They ARE the blue dilution gene Blue pearl is genetically the exact same as Blue Fawn in Calls. Porcelain is the exact same as Pastel. It's either one copy of blue (Blue Pearl and Blue Fawn) or two copies of blue (Porcelain and Pastel).

That is the reason Calls are most commonly used when breeding out - the color genetics are the exact same if you pick blue fawns or pastels (or grays, since that's just the same color minus the blue gene). And then mallards of course are the same genetically color-wise as a gray Call, and have the sleeker body type.

Breeding out to Calls and mallards also kind of preserves the original genetics of the breed which is another reason they're used - the breed was created when Holderread bred wild mallards he hatched from eggs from an abandoned nest with Blue Bibbed Calls, and then went from there selecting the traits he liked best in the resulting ducklings.

But birds aren't treated like dogs - pedigree doesn't matter. If it looks like a breed, has all the traits of that breed, and breeds true, then it IS that breed, regardless of what it was crossed with in the past. So you can really use any breed as long as you get back to the traits of the original breed.

That also makes sense, maybe you could cross the Aztec to the Mallard, then after a few generations cross to Silver bantams to gain the type you need. You could also gain and add some nice colors into the Aztecs from the silver bantams.

 

[primordialkraken]

Aztecs are a very rare breed of bantam duck created by Holderread in 1983. Holderread began to develop them when they realized that people wanted a small, pretty duck to keep that was hardy and easy to propagate. Call ducks weren't cutting it for some people, since well-bred Calls have a lot of trouble hatching and can be hard to breed. So Holderread set out to create a very pretty bantam duck that bred easily and was hardy and vigorous. Thus, the Aztec was created.

They were bred to be about halfway between the extremes of the wild mallard and the Call duck. Not so long and racy as a mallard, but not so short and round as a Call. As a result, they were small, hardy birds that weren't difficult to breed. They were good layers, as far as bantam ducks go, producing between 40 and 100 eggs a year. They were good mothers, and readily hatched and raised their own ducklings.

However, Holderread eventually decided they would no longer keep the breed. Since then, they have nearly become extinct. But some were preserved, and have been kept in small flocks, being outcrossed to Calls or mallards to try to introduce new blood.

A small group of just such these birds made their way to me today. I offered help and genetics advice to someone with a small flock of these beautiful little ducks, and they decided to entrust me with a small flock of my own to work with and to help preserve the breed.

Here is most of my little group today, settling into their new digs. Certainly didn't take them long to find the pool!

View attachment 1845376

More pictures to come as they get settled.

Does anyone else keep this breed?

Never had we heard of this breed! Remarkable that you and your friends are able to keep this lineage going. I am thankful you commented to me on a post for Vermont, as you seem to be a beacon of knowledge and insight. Thanks for sharing these cute ducks

 

[lfennell1]

The color of all of them (except the one in the very back) was called Porcelain by Holderread, and it is analogous, at least genetics-wise, to pastel in Calls. There used to also be another color, called Blue Pearl, which is analogous to blue fawn in Calls.

The one in the back there is actually the result of an outcross to a mallard, to try to add genetic diversity. That one is 'Blue Pearl' or blue fawn. I have not seen any Aztecs in the Blue Pearl color, it seems like the breeders that were preserving the breed probably preferred and selected for Porcelain only, but I will be keeping Blue Pearl offspring from the cross so that both colors exist again. The goal of course will be to breed the cross back to the Aztecs to regain the Aztec type. It'll take a few generations, but it'll be worth it.

Yes, they can fly

 

[lfennell1]

These are my Dec 2024 Aztec hatches.