birdnerd18 Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 (edited) Hi all, I was looking through old pictures and found this duck. The picture was taken a few years ago in August in Orlando, Florida at Universal Studios. My guess was that it's an American Black Duck, but after looking up that bird's summer range, I'm not so sure. Could an American Black Duck potentially stay in a theme park all year using scraps from tourists as a food source? Thanks for your help! P.S. There was a large pond area nearby with plenty of ducks, moorhens, herons and lots of aquatic plants. Edited July 18, 2021 by birdnerd18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Spencer Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 (edited) Domestic Mallard. The breast feathers are too rusty, not black. The bill colors are wrong for an American Black of either sex. Edited July 18, 2021 by Charlie Spencer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdnerd18 Posted July 18, 2021 Author Share Posted July 18, 2021 3 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said: Domestic Mallard. The breast feathers are too rusty, not black. The bill colors are wrong for an American Black of either sex. Interesting. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bird Nuts Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 7 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said: Domestic Mallard. The breast feathers are too rusty, not black. The bill colors are wrong for an American Black of either sex. Why domestic? Looks fine for a wild male Mallard in eclipse plumage. I suppose it could have some Mottled genes, but I wouldn't be able to tell. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seanbirds Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 (edited) 9 minutes ago, Charlie Spencer said: Domestic Mallard. The breast feathers are too rusty, not black. The bill colors are wrong for an American Black of either sex. Why couldn’t it just be an eclipse wild-type male? EDIT- SNIPED!!! Edited July 18, 2021 by Seanbirds 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Spencer Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 (edited) 5 minutes ago, The Bird Nuts said: Why domestic? Looks fine for a wild male Mallard in eclipse plumage. I suppose it could have some Mottled genes, but I wouldn't be able to tell. Y'all are correct. I withdraw the 'Domestic' part of my reply. I saw 'theme park' and gave the bird itself a less-than-complete look. Edited July 18, 2021 by Charlie Spencer 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdnerd18 Posted July 18, 2021 Author Share Posted July 18, 2021 Thanks for your help, everyone! Are eclipse plumages rare? I think there were quite a few of these guys wandering around or swimming in the pond, but I only caught this one on camera. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bird Nuts Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 21 minutes ago, birdnerd18 said: Thanks for your help, everyone! Are eclipse plumages rare? I think there were quite a few of these guys wandering around or swimming in the pond, but I only caught this one on camera. No, eclipse plumage is a male duck's nonbreeding plumage, which is dull and resembles the females. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdnerd18 Posted July 18, 2021 Author Share Posted July 18, 2021 8 minutes ago, The Bird Nuts said: No, eclipse plumage is a male duck's nonbreeding plumage, which is dull and resembles the females. Good to know. Thanks! ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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