Is this little guy a mallard?

[ericdc]

I would venture to say it's a gadwall or mallard. It looks a little light for a mallard.

 

[SassyKat6181]

This is what my Mallards looked like at a few days old. 3 turned out to be male.

 

[desertdarlene]

I'm leaning heavily towards a gadwall duckling. It's very hard to tell and I'm still learning my ducklings, though. The reason why I say it's a gadwall duckling has to do with the shape of the head, the markings on the face, and the markings on the body. It's only very slightly different than a baby mallard. Mallards and gadwalls are closely related. We shall see when it grows up. Wood ducks have more of a square head, so I don't think it's a baby wood duck.

Here's a photo that I saw of a baby gadwall: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeforsman/5686329239/

Perhaps you can ask a wildlife rescue person about that. I don't know if there's any laws against keeping gadwalls where you live.

 

[sevenbabychicks]

Quote:
That gadwall photo looks exactly like him! Thanks so much! The only thing... my birdbook says they're found in swampy lowlands, and I live in the mountains near a fast-moving stream. Time will tell

I'm trying to find a wildlife rehabilitator, but am having a difficult time finding one around here... which is weird because there is so much wildlife in western Montana! I think every state has a ban on keeping migratory birds. I used to have a wildlife rehab license - maybe it's time I reactivate it and start a center

I'm also raising a crow because I couldn't find a place that cared a lick about his welfare

 

[desertdarlene]

We have gadwalls near me and I live in the dry southwest. There's also a healthy population in southern Alaska, so they can be anywhere. I could be wrong about him being a gadwall, but that's what I'm guessing. We shall see as he grows up. People do keep gadwalls much in the way that mallards are kept, so it's entirely possible that all you need to do is get a special permit to keep him. Hopefully, that won't be a problem.