WHO'S THE FATHER

[nchls school]

I have a Mallard that started laying a while back. I do not have a Mallard drake but I do have Call and Muscovy drakes. I have seen her mating with both. She has now gone broody. The eggs are viable and developing. Has anyone out there incubated Mallard/muscovy hybrid eggs and know the incubation period? Mallards are 28 and Muscovy are 35, so if the eggs are a hybrid I'm guessing the hatch time would be somewhere between 28 nd 35 days. I am hoping the ducklings will be Call/Mallards. I also assume my Mallards are a cross breed since this is not when Mallards would breed.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

What color are the drakes? In theory there is the possibility that the call/mallard cross would hatch earlier and the Muscovy/mallard cross later. However, it is not an exact science. The best way to know would be to compare ducklings that hatch with the drakes colors crossed with mallard.

 

[nchls school]

What color are the drakes? In theory there is the possibility that the call/mallard cross would hatch earlier and the Muscovy/mallard cross later. However, it is not an exact science. The best way to know would be to compare ducklings that hatch with the drakes colors crossed with mallard.

I am sure I will know who dad is with my first look at the ducklings; if hatch time doesn't work. Call drake looks just like a small mallard drake whereas muscovy drake is chocolate and white with no feather pattern. With the call drake the ducklings will look exactly like mallard ducklings. Not so with the muscovy.

 

[The Duck Dad]

i think it is more likely that the call duck is the dad.

 

[All4Eggz]

@EverythingDucks

 

[EverythingDucks]

Your Call drake is most likely the father, but you'll know for sure once they hatch.
Could be cool to test out the hatch time theory if they do turn out to be Muscovy Mallard cross babies.

 

[nchls school]

The ducklings hatched and are obviously 1/2 call duck.

 

[The Duck Dad]

I have a Mallard that started laying a while back. I do not have a Mallard drake but I do have Call and Muscovy drakes. I have seen her mating with both. She has now gone broody. The eggs are viable and developing. Has anyone out there incubated Mallard/muscovy hybrid eggs and know the incubation period? Mallards are 28 and Muscovy are 35, so if the eggs are a hybrid I'm guessing the hatch time would be somewhere between 28 nd 35 days. I am hoping the ducklings will be Call/Mallards. I also assume my Mallards are a cross breed since this is not when Mallards would breed.

My half runner duck mallard hen has started laying so yeah, it's probably a cross

 

[nchls school]

My half runner duck mallard hen has started laying so yeah, it's probably a cross

When the eggs started to pip the "mallard" deserted her nest and eggs. All hatched in the incubator. This behavior also points to her being crossed with a nonbroody duck breed.

 

[nchls school]

I had a few mallard-cross eggs hatch a couple days ago. Four hatched-two have died-two are still in the incubator; very slow to gain strength. They will have to be moved into a make-shift brooder. Very weak from the start-assisted hatch-they are obviously 1/2 muscovy. This is not a cross I planned on and will try to make sure it does not happen again. In the spring, when I want ducklings, the muscovy

drake will be penned. Look like muscovy, sound like mallard, and have the needle toe nails of muscovy.