How would female ducks react to a drake?

[Yoko Kato]

I have 5 girl mallard ducks. They are 6 weeks old. I would like some input on how they will get along with an adult mallard drake. We have a friend that is looking for a home for his male mallard. Before we even consider taking the duck in, I wanted to hear what people experienced with introducing a male to female only flock. I mean, will he be mean to the girls? Will the girls fight over the only boy? I am concerned about breaking the harmony the girls have among themselves. Any input will help. Thanks.

Y

 

[xfilesnumber1fan]

If he is an adult mallard they are the worst...He will be very mean and try to breed with them...I rehomed 1 of my males because the min I turned my back on him he tryed to mount a 8 week old..The mallard drake has a bad rep as ( THE RAPIST ) After I got mallards I found out why..They do not care if the female want to breed or not..I love my mallards but boy you have to keep SOME of those drakes in their place!!
NO the girls wont fight over him..

 

[Wifezilla]

A good drake can be great for a flock. They watch for predators, find bugs and other treats and tell the girls where they are, etc... While some drakes CAN be very rough or mean, the two boys I have dealt with were good for the most part. Jack, the first drake I had, DID NOT like babies. Bungie, the drake I have now, was used as a "babysitter" for younger ducklings and is great with babies.

 

[ChickenToes]

It varies from drake to drake. I rehomed my last Khaki Campbell drake because he was so rough with the girls, he left bald patches on their necks from digging at them with his bill. Drakes do tend to be more aggressive than females, and may become too dominating.

 

[duckboatprincess]

I have four drakes with my four females and everyone gets along fine. I've got two rouen drakes, one pekin, and one runner. The runner is a bit younger than the others but I haven't had any problems with them

 

[Yoko Kato]

Thank you so much for your inputs!!! Sounds like it depends on the drake? If he does protect the flock, that would be nice, but I do not want the girl ducks to be bothered by him. Not sure what I want to do yet, but just wanted to thank you guys for responding. I appreciate it very much!

Y

 

[Tailfeathers]

Quote:
I would agree with ChickenToes. I good rule of thumb is to have at least 5 or more ducks to every one drake. Some males will be more aggressive than others but all you need is one raving, testosterone-overloaded, maniac to drive the girls bananas.

Most of the time I find the boys leave the girls alone until they start coming into the age of egg-laying. Then the activity can start. I know there is supposed to be a breeding season and ergo, also a down time, but I have yet to see it. I've got a couple of males that are like the Energizer Bunny. They just keep going and going and going.

What's bad is that the others will line up behind him and wait their turn. The pour girl who is unfortunate enough to not get away (usually because she still has some feathers on her neck), winds up having 3 to 5 males have their way with her before finally being allowed to go away.

No, the girls won't be fighting over any of the boys. I've never seen, nor even heard of anything like that. In fact, you likely won't even find them sitting around and quacking, "Come on over here Big Boy." Most of the time the problem will be trying to get enough females that the boys will leave the girls alone for awhile.

I tell you this just in case you are apt to let them breed and want to hatch some eggs. Figure on a 50/50 male/female ratio and know that EVERYBODY is always looking for females and trying to get rid of males. It seems that everytime I get my balance just right, a Bald Eagle or some other critter decides to get one of my ducks and inevitably it is always a female.

Oh, one last thing. I almost forgot to mention, in my experience I haven't found the Production Rouens (close to a mallard) to be anymore frisky than my other breeds. In fact I have a Khaki Campbell and a Runner that are just nuts!

Hope that helps.

God Bless,

 

[Wifezilla]

No, the girls won't be fighting over any of the boys. I've never seen, nor even heard of anything like that.

Uhhhhh....my duck Uno bites Chrissy on the vent when she squats for Bungie. I swear the little wench is jealous.

In fact, you likely won't even find them sitting around and quacking, "Come on over here Big Boy."

Lana would often follow Jack around head bobbing and squatting for him. She was often the instigator. Chrissy is the same way with Bungie.

Maybe my girls are just weird

 

[Tailfeathers]

I have not ever witnessed the "jealousy" behavior but I wouldn't rule it out. Likewise, I have not witnessed any of my ducks walking up and willingly squatting for the boys. Certainly there is a lot of head bobbing that goes on but because of what I've seen thus far, I'm not sure if it's all related to mating or not.

One thing I should've said is, to be honest, I'm still learning about ducks. So don't look to me for an "expert" opinion. I'm not sure or not, but I think the behavior I've witnessed is because I just don't have the right male/female ratio yet. I have had to separate the females from the males just to give them a break and allow them to grow some feathers back on their neck. One thing I do know is that my girls just don't walk up and squat before the boys. If they did they probably wouldn't have their necks looking like they do.

I have been told by others that they've actually had instances where they had ducks and had too many males for the females and the males wound up actually killing the females from over-breeding. I think I've also seen or read that ducks are supposed to be monogamous and mate for life. Maybe that's just in the wild. I dunno. It sure ain't the case around here.

Oh, and while you didn't ask, just FYI or anyone elses who may be reading and curious, I have often seen the males going after one another. They never do any harm but they do run after each other, push each other around from time to time, and occasionally reach out and nip one another. I think I may have even seen one try to mount another male once.

Now, I just realized that I've perhaps side-tracked your post so let me go back and answer your question directly. Will he be "mean" to the girls? "Mean" is subjective. I would say it will all depend on the male and how aggressive he is. Will the girls fight over the only boy? Looks like that is still up for debate. Personally, I doubt it. Will bringing in a boy upset the harmony? Definitely. Absolutely. That may not necessarily be a bad thing but the "harmony" is bound to change.

Just imagine you and four of your girlfriends get together for a weekend of "girl time". Then one of your husbands shows up. Depending on how the weekend was going, it might be a blessing and it might not be. But the "harmony" will definitely be changed.

Well, let us know what you decide to do...

God Bless,

 

[Wifezilla]

I have been told by others that they've actually had instances where they had ducks and had too many males for the females and the males wound up actually killing the females from over-breeding.

Yes, I was warned about this from the lady I got my adult ducks from.

Maybe I am seeing different behavior because I have always had only 1 adult drake at a time with at least 2 girls. However, in my case, I would not rule out my ducks just being weird