---
title: "What the sources say about the Mallard | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "45 claims from the Mallard profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/mallard-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/mallard/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Mallard (*Anas platyrhynchos*)

> 45 claims from the Mallard profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Mallard](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/mallard/)

## Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

https://www.fws.gov/species/mallard-anas-platyrhynchos

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Almost any freshwater habitat | This species is found in all flyways and in almost any freshwater habitat. (note: stats.habitat) |
| a medium to large dabbling duck | Mallards are a medium to large dabbling duck. |
| 50 to 65 cm long | Length: 19.7 to 25.6 in (50 to 65 cm) |
| wingspan of 82 to 95 cm | Wingspan: 32.3 to 37.4 in (82 to 95 cm) |
| Males and hens are similar in size, and both weigh 0.9 to 1.4 kg | Both sexes are similar in size ranging 2 to 3 pounds (.9 to 1.4 kilograms). (note: source prints .9 kg (2 lb); rendered 0.9) |
| In North America, most mallards are migratory, breeding in the northern United States and Canada and wintering in the southern United States and Mexico | most individuals are migratory and breed in the northern United States and Canada and winter in the Southern United States and Mexico. |
| the most abundant duck species in North America | is the most abundant duck species in North America. |

## Mallard. National Audubon Society, Guide to North American Birds.

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/mallard

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Almost any freshwater habitat across the Northern Hemisphere, from marshes and rivers to city parks | Marshes, wooded swamps, grain fields, ponds, rivers, lakes, bays, city parks. (note: stats.habitat) |
| Mostly plants, plus insects, worms, mollusks and small fish | Majority of diet is plant material, including seeds, stems, and roots of a vast variety of different plants, especially sedges, grasses, pondweeds, smartweeds, many others; also acorns and other tree seeds, various kinds of waste grain. Also eat insects, crustaceans, mollusks, tadpoles, frogs, earthworms, small fish. (note: stats.diet) |
| Mallards forage in water by dabbling, by submerging the head and neck, or by up-ending | The Mallard forages in water by dabbling, submerging head and neck, up-ending, rarely by diving |
| They rarely dive | forages in water by dabbling, submerging head and neck, up-ending, rarely by diving |
| On land they graze and pluck seeds | forages on land by grazing, plucking seeds, grubbing for roots. |
| The majority of the diet is plant material, including seeds, stems and roots | Majority of diet is plant material, including seeds, stems, and roots of a vast variety of different plants |
| They also eat insects, mollusks, tadpoles, frogs, earthworms and small fish | Also eat insects, crustaceans, mollusks, tadpoles, frogs, earthworms, small fish. |
| The hen leads the young within a day after hatching | The female Mallard leads the young within a day after hatching. |
| in many places the mallard has managed to domesticate itself, relying on handouts in city parks | In many places this species has managed to domesticate itself, relying on handouts in city parks. |
| tags: urban | In many places this species has managed to domesticate itself, relying on handouts in city parks. (note: task #1009; the habitat line already names city parks) |

## Mallard. National Wildlife Federation, Wildlife Guide.

https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Birds/Mallard

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A mallard usually lives 5 to 10 years in the wild | A mallard usually lives for 5 to 10 years in the wild. (note: usually rendered as most) |
| the oldest known was a male that lived to 27 | The oldest known mallard was a male that lived to be 27 years old. |
| Usually 5 to 10 years in the wild, according to the National Wildlife Federation | A mallard usually lives for 5 to 10 years in the wild. |
| whose oldest known mallard was a male aged 27 | The oldest known mallard was a male that lived to be 27 years old. |

## Rogers (2001). Anas platyrhynchos (mallard). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Anas_platyrhynchos/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The familiar quack comes from the female | The familiar "quack" of ducks is from the female mallard |
| Her decrescendo call is given when she wants to bring other ducks, such as her ducklings, to her | it is named the "decrescendo call", and can be heard for miles. A female will give the call when she wants to bring other ducks to her, such as her ducklings |

## Cunningham & Russell (2000). Egg investment is influenced by male attractiveness in the mallard. Nature.

https://doi.org/10.1038/35003565

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a hen that lays larger eggs after mating with a male she prefers | lay larger eggs after copulating with preferred males (note: tagline; copulating rendered as mating) |
| Hens lay larger eggs after mating with a preferred male | lay larger eggs after copulating with preferred males (note: stats.superpower) |
| A hen mallard's eggs can depend on her mate | individual female mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) lay larger eggs after copulating with preferred males and smaller eggs after copulating with less preferred males. As a result, females produced offspring of better body condition when paired with preferred males. |
| individual females laid larger eggs after copulating with preferred males and smaller eggs after copulating with less preferred males | individual female mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) lay larger eggs after copulating with preferred males and smaller eggs after copulating with less preferred males. As a result, females produced offspring of better body condition when paired with preferred males. |
| they produced offspring in better body condition when paired with preferred males | individual female mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) lay larger eggs after copulating with preferred males and smaller eggs after copulating with less preferred males. As a result, females produced offspring of better body condition when paired with preferred males. |

## Schummer et al. (2023). Population genetics and geographic origins of mallards harvested in northwestern Ohio. PLOS ONE.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282874

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The wild ancestor of nearly all domestic ducks | Nearly all domestic ducks (e.g., Pekin duck) are decedents of wild, Eurasian mallards (note: tagline) |
| Nearly all domestic ducks, such as the Pekin duck, descend from wild Eurasian mallards | Nearly all domestic ducks (e.g., Pekin duck) are decedents of wild, Eurasian mallards (note: source spells descendants 'decedents') |
| domesticated in China around 500 B.C. | their domestication in China around 500 B. C. |
| Game-farm mallards are released into the wild on purpose | the intentional release of the game-farm mallard breed |
| the spread of their genes into wild populations has been hypothesized to at least partly explain recent mallard declines in eastern North America | Increasing prevalence of game-farm genes within wild populations is predicted to decrease mallard fitness because of introduction of artificially selected, maladaptive traits [ 17 , 19 ], and this has been hypothesized to at least partially explain recent mallard population declines in eastern North America |

## Kraus et al. (2011). Evolution and connectivity in the world-wide migration system of the mallard: Inferences from mitochondrial DNA. BMC Genetics.

https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2156-12-99

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| across the Northern Hemisphere | distributed widely over the whole Northern Hemisphere (note: stats.habitat) |
| It is the most numerous Holarctic waterfowl species, found across the whole Northern Hemisphere | The mallard ( Anas platyrhynchos ) is the most numerous Holarctic waterfowl species and distributed widely over the whole Northern Hemisphere. |
| Mallards that breed far north mostly migrate and spend winter much farther south | Northerly breeding birds are mostly migratory, wintering much further south |
| Those that breed in temperate regions, such as parts of Western Europe, can be residents | birds breeding in temperate regions, especially in parts of Western Europe, can be resident (note: resident, as the source words it) |
| tags: migratory | Migratory mallard populations often do not exhibit clearly defined routes, even when breeding and non-breeding destinations are thousands of kilometres distant (note: task #1009; the definition asks for seasonal journeys of thousands of kilometres. The same paragraph: 'Northerly breeding birds are mostly migratory, wintering much further south', so the tag is the species' northern populations, as the page's FAQ says) |

## Duck Displays. Stanford Birds.

https://web.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Duck_Displays.html

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Groups of four to five drakes may swim around a female, arch their necks and whistle | Groups of four to five males may swim around females, arching their necks, whistling |
| Then they dip their bills below the water and jerk them up to their breasts, spurting water toward the preferred female | lowering their bills below the water surface and jerking their bills up to their breasts while spurting water toward the preferred female (water-flick or grunt-whistle) |
| This water-flick may take only a fraction of a second | The water-flick may take only a fraction of a second to complete. |
| Like other dabbling ducks of the genus Anas, a mallard can spring into the air without running across the water first | dabbling or "puddle" ducks (in North America members of the genus Anas -- who are able to spring into the air without running across the water surface) |
| Groups of four to five mallard drakes may swim around one female | Groups of four to five males may swim around females, arching their necks, whistling (note: vibe.reason; same quote as the body claim "Groups of four to five drakes may swim around a female, arch") |

## Anas platyrhynchos. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2025: e.T22680186A281835571.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2025-2.rlts.t22680186a281835571.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: stats.conservationStatus) |
| The IUCN Red List rates the mallard Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). |