The call duck mystery

[Kleonaptra]

When I bought my calls, it was a mother and 4 babies. The mother started changing colours immediately so I thought, she's a young bird. It became obvious at least 2 of the ducklings were drakes, one that looked identical to the mother. I sold one of the drakes, but within a few days I thought, Im missing the mother duck! The guy I sold the drake to called and said, you gave me a girl duck! So he brought her back and we swapped.

He definitely got a drake. But now 'mother duck' is a drake too. Curly tail, chases females and mounts them....But begs the chicken to mount her?

The obvious answer is, my friend gave me back the wrong bird. But he doesnt have calls, he has meat ducks. Mine stuck out like a sore thumb.

Im thinking, could the ducklings have imprinted on and been sold with a drake, or is this a gender confused duck? Its like having 4 boys and my girls are not happy!


Taken the day I got them, early November 2013


Taken a few weeks later


Taken early december 2013, this is 'Mother duck' Amelia with Trafalgar


Top of the pic is Amelia 'Mother duck' bottom of pic is Trafalgar. The snowy is Leelu the only confirmed female. She laid eggs this year, no, I didnt get her confused with mother duck! She changed from yellow to white and was always the smallest. Mother duck became a dead ringer for Thorne

Thorne, drake three, dead ringer for mother duck

Another of mother duck and Trafalgar. This is the chicken Amelia has a thing for. She(?) submits in front of her and begs to be mated, but when Thorne and Trafalgar go on a mating rampage Amelia is right there with them, peking mounting and wiggling that little tail! One of my theories is, she does it to avoid being mated?

It should be noted, I regularly get 3 eggs from my 3 pekins. I occasionally get an egg from Leelu who lays in the garden, sometimes from the scovy that are slightly greenish...and occasionally a small ovvalish egg that doesnt belong to anyone else. So SOMEONE here is a girl acting like a boy.

 

[Amiga]

Ducks quack, drakes have a quieter voice. I believe that goes for all the mallard-derived domestic ducks, anyway.

Females will hop on other females. Ducks do this quite often. No confusion, just going with their feelings.

 

[Kleonaptra]

Ducks quack, drakes have a quieter voice. I believe that goes for all the mallard-derived domestic ducks, anyway.

Females will hop on other females. Ducks do this quite often. No confusion, just going with their feelings.

Yes, I have seen girls mating each other, my big girls did it all the time. Occasionally still do. Amelia did quack on occasion before she was sold, since her return she now does raspy murmurs like the other two. Thorne and Trafalgar never fight, they go everywhere together. They really like teaming up to mate the girls...One holds one mates then switch. Amelia gets very involved with this, but usually is hanging out with Leelu. None of the other girls are this devoted to 'acting' like a drake. She even gets a curly tail?

 

[buff goose guy]

unless you see eggs note this as a drake, i dont know what to really tell you other than that.

 

[Kleonaptra]

I have to agree with you - but then what happened to my mother duck? Or were the babies imprinted on and sold with a drake?

 

[buff goose guy]

The people probably sold you a drake that was near the ducklings thinking it was a female, but was probably a drake all along. but it took the responsibility of the babies seeing that no one was careing for them and they were familiar from the place that they all came from.

 

[Kleonaptra]

The people probably sold you a drake that was near the ducklings thinking it was a female, but was probably a drake all along. but it took the responsibility of the babies seeing that no one was careing for them and they were familiar from the place that they all came from.

Thats interesting. I got them at an auction, I was specifically after call ducks and they were the only ones. I wanted the mother because I thought its definitely fertile female. Looks like I can toss that logic out the window! Out of the 4 babies only 1 was a girl so I got 4 freakin drakes! Its not as bad as the others I must say and wanders off with the little girl. They tend to hang out together a lot.

 

[buff goose guy]

Ohh yeah you cant trust auctions for what you expect your getting, the people probably didnt want those ducklings and a drak so thats what they put in the auction, same thing as before, im sorry about you only haveing one girl.

 

[Kleonaptra]

Thanks! I appreciate your saying so. She's llovely and had a beautiful baby this year so Im very happy with her, but Ive got to get rid of at least one drake now. Ones really nasty and gets the others going, Im hoping if I get rid of him the others wont be so bad. I used to let the whole lot free range now the drakes go out and I keep everyone else locked up for their own safety.

 

[learycow]

My guess is that you were sold a juvenile male with the ducklings. If you look at the first pic, the one you say is the mother duck, looks young, definitely not a full grown, mature duck. And you can see the green head just starting to change (up close to the bill and around the eyes). It's not so much imprinting, but they will go with any older duck that won't pick on them if they get separated from the mother duck. It's an instinctual behavior in ducklings.

Green heads, raspy quacks, curly tail feathers ALL indicate MALES. You can have a male that will quack like a female every now and then though.