Welsh Harlequin Ducklings! Help with sex and phase please?

[Golden Egg]

We just received our order of Welsh Harlequin ducklings from Holderread! They are mixed silver and gold, males and females. Is there an expert out there who can help us with what phase and sex they are?
Here's a link to the Picasa web album.
https://picasaweb.google.com/117715058357627348492/WelshHarlequinDucks?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ6UlpSumqOfJw#

Here are closeups of some of the different colors. (ETA: there is a bonus duckling! It could be any of them, but I'm guessing it is #4 here because that one is unique.)

#1, #2



#3



#4 (could be the bonus duckling?)

 

[GloryGirl]

Congrats on your adorable flock!

Let's see, silver phase has black pigment and gold doesn't, just brown where the silvers have black. Within the first 3 days sex is 90% accurate by bill color with the males(drakes) having a dark bill and the females(ducks) having a light bill ending in a dark tip. That being said, here's my analysis of the pics you posted here:

#1 appears to be a gold duck, #2 appears to be a silver duck, #3 appears to be a silver drake, #4 is just too difficult for me to tell at that angle.

I had one I wasn't completely sure of at first either, but is a gold duck (she started quacking last week). I'd post a picture of her for reference, but it's stored in my husband's computer and he's not home right now.

I'm sure there are others here with more direct experience than I have, as I just have the 3, but I read a lot and there's great info on this in Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks by Dave Holderread.

 

[Golden Egg]

Glorygirl, thanks!
I just realized that the bonus duckling they sent might be another breed. I am editing the first post to say this.

 

[DucksnDaffodils]

Thanks so much for asking this question with the pics, and GloryGirl for answering. I had the exact same question just having gotten 9 WH yesterday, and this helped SO much!

 

[DucksnDaffodils]

I don't want to take over this thread, but I thought I would ask related question. I was sent an extra of what I assumed was a WH duckling. But she is way darker then any of the others, even my silver phase boys. Is she just a dark WH or something else?

Here is a picture of Willow on the left (the dark ducklings) and a silver phase girl on the right.


Another. See how dark her head is, and her back is too. ?? Whatever she is I just LOVE her, she is such a doll.

 

[GloryGirl]

I found the pic I mentioned earlier. She's the one in the back.








This is her at about 5 weeks.

 

[Nebraskagirl]

I don't want to take over this thread, but I thought I would ask related question. I was sent an extra of what I assumed was a WH duckling. But she is way darker then any of the others, even my silver phase boys. Is she just a dark WH or something else?

Here is a picture of Willow on the left (the dark ducklings) and a silver phase girl on the right.


Another. See how dark her head is, and her back is too. ?? Whatever she is I just LOVE her, she is such a doll.

Your mystery duckling in question appears to be a female WH. One of our WH hatched out dark like that. She is a cutie and often times they will put in an extra duckling in case one dies in transit.

 

[DucksnDaffodils]

Thank you very much!! I assumed that she was, but another opinion always helps!

 

[Miranda2609]

I bought WH hatching eggs from a local breeder. I don't believe they're anything close to show quality, or the excellent quality that Holderread's has. Curious as to sex? I know that duckings with light bills are the ones that are females, with a fairly good odds that you're correct. I didn't have any ending in a dark tip, but had two dark dark bills, one mildly dark bill, and then three that had a yellow bill with a black line down the middle.



They are two wees old, and that is how their bills have been since hatching. One is already starting to Quack, so I'm assuming I have at least one definite female. Just confused as I didn't really have any with the typical "female" bill color. The two I kept, their bills are just barely starting to darken up. What do you think on sex?

 

[PrayingMantis]

Hello! We have 2 welsh ducklings now 22 days old. They both looked very different from the beginning but both had pinkish bills. But they have always been 2 different sizes. We also have 22 day old Campbell's that equally same size as smaller welsh. So at this point I suspect one of my welsh is a male. His color on his bill has lightened with only a dark tip or "bean" and it has gotten darker. His size is bigger than the rest, his feet are yellow. Compared to my other welsh, her colors have darkened, she is super sweet(named Lilly), bill is getting dark, feet are dark and she is smaller. Do I have a Donald instead of a Daisy? We are new at this and only want females for eggs to eat. I worry that if he is a male we must trade him in ASAP so there will be no further bonding with the other ducklings. Not to mention my kids! Thanks!