Mallards Out for a Swim

I saw this guy and his girl out for a swim in the Delaware Raritan Canal. (Don't try this yourself; the rangers have rules against this.)

I've certainly talked about Mallards before, and they and the Canada Goose are the easiest-to-find year-round waterfowl in New Jersey, so unless you spend your days in a sensory deprivation tank you've probably seen plenty of them [1].

There is a belief among hunters that a northern group (subspecies?) of Mallard are larger, and thus more desirable to hunters, but given the way they breed it's virtually impossible for there to be an isolated population of Mallards that don't mix with their cousins. Basically female Mallards hook up with males regardless of the male's birthplace and lead him back to her childhood neighborhood.

Mallards are not only common and widespread across the Northern Hemisphere, they're also the ancestors of most domesticated ducks, probably making them the most abundant waterfowl species. And Mallard genes can show up where you don't expect them, since they can also breed with at least some other wild species. (I know American Black Ducks hybridize with Mallards.)

They're even common in popular culture; both Donald Duck and Daffy Duck are considered to be (probably domesticated considering their plumage) Mallards [2].

May 10, 2023 at Delaware Raritan Canal
Photo 282316182, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

[1] If you have spent your life in a sensory deprivation tank, you may have hallucinated them anyway.

[2] Admittedly DNA analysis of cartoon ducks is difficult and error prone. When asked about their ancestry, Daffy called the question "despicable", and Donald said something that no one understood.