The Manky
Mallard:
UK Status: Resident.
Habitat: This duck
can be found on almost any body of water, including ponds,
lakes, canals, rivers, estuary's and even by the sea shore at
times.
Breeding: Mallards
come onto dry land to nest, often well away from water. Nests
are crude and basic, usually lined with dry grass in a hollow
under a bush, or some other cover. Females lay many eggs in
March, and sometimes crèche the with another females eggs,
taking turns incubating them, therefore lightening the work
load.
Often in May, or June they
can be seen leading the ducklings to water. Adult birds will
often feign injury during this process, and move away from the
young ducklings, so as to distract potential predators from
their young.
Male Mallards are extremely
randy, and will mate with most other duck species, both wild
and domestic. Therefore there are many unusually coloured
hybrids around. including all white mallards, some of the
white mallard are hybrids, some are purebred. Hybrid mallards
are known collectively as 'Manky Mallards', poor birds.
Comment: Probably our
most common duck, the Mallard is widely distributed throughout
the British Isles. Typically males and females are sexually
dimorphic, that is to say they differ in appearance. In the
breeding season, the male is a splendid and handsome
bird. Females are rather plain but beautiful in their own way.
In most places they seem
quite comfortable with human a presence around, and often come
to people to be fed. Often they they squabble between
themselves, and quite aggressively bully smaller water fowl
out of the way.