Duck or drake

[Will L]

Hi,
I was given a Muscovy duck to add to a small flock. They believed it was a female but it’s looking like a drake now. Any thoughts?
Thanks,
-Will

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

How old?

 

[SolarDuck]

Looks like a girl to me, probably a few years old, do you have any other Muscovy?

 

[MotherOfDuckens]

What noises does it make? Pretty rolling coos mean a pretty lady. If it only hisses, you have a handsome gentleman on your hands.

 

[Will L]

I think she is a year and half old. I’ve heard a couple hisses if I get close. She is on the left in the pictures below.

 

[SolarDuck]

If she makes ANY noise at all other than hissing and huffing there is a 100% chance she is a girl. Males ONLY make hissing and huffing noises. Females can hiss when you get too close or they are mad at you or broody or whatever, but males ONLY hiss. And males are 2-3x the size of females she looks too small to be a male to me. Although if she is only 1.5 years old I think that is a lot of caruncle growth, and generally boys have more caruncle growth than girls. The best way to know for sure is just going by the sounds they make.

 

[SolarDuck]

I think the one you posted in your first pics is a girl, and so is the white one, and the other 2 pied ones next to the white one in your pic look like boys.

 

[MotherOfDuckens]

Females can still huff and hiss, especially if they are protecting eggs or chicks, or feel threatened (or I imagine just grumpy ). Females have a much wider range of vocalizations. Males can ONLY huff and hiss.

In the pic on the left, compared to the drake next to her she does look more duck-like. If they hatched from the same clutch I would say definitely a girl. I am far from an expert, though.

 

[MotherOfDuckens]

If she makes ANY noise at all other than hissing and huffing there is a 100% chance she is a girl. Males ONLY make hissing and huffing noises. Females can hiss when you get too close or they are mad at you or broody or whatever, but males ONLY hiss. And males are 2-3x the size of females she looks too small to be a male to me. Although if she is only 1.5 years old I think that is a lot of caruncle growth, and generally boys have more caruncle growth than girls. The best way to know for sure is just going by the sounds they make.

Beat me to it!

 

[Will L]

The duck in the first set of pictures and the duck on the left in the second set of pictures is the same duck.

Her caruncles have grown a lot in the last month and a half. (again on the left from dec). They do have a pond to swim in. I was just feeding them some duck weed.