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Farm Animals |
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DUCKS
The DUCKS are the farm are Huey and Louie. We are male Call Ducks. We were born April 3, 2008. Call Ducks were developed in England as miniature decoys to “call” in the wild ducks. Calls ducks are a bantam breed of domesticated ducks. They look similar to mallards, but are smaller in size. Miniature ducks have become more popular as pets because they are more easily cared for and require much less space than other waterfowl. Call Ducks characteristics include short, deep bodies and short, wide bills. Gray and white are the most popular colors of Call Ducks; however they can also be buff, pastel, khaki, chocolate, and butterscotch in color. Female Call Ducks have a very loud quack and can produce 25-75 eggs a year. Call Ducks usually weigh 1 ½ -2 lbs. A female duck is called a hen. A male is called a drake and is more colorful than the hen. A young duck is called a duckling.
Indian Runner Ducks walk more upright than other ducks.
A group of ducks is called a flock. |
Some facts about Ducks: Ducks are birds. They are called "waterfowl" because they are normally found in places with water like ponds, streams and rivers. They are related to geese and swans. Ducks are smaller and have shorter necks and wings and a stour body. Ducks have webbed feet, designed for swimming. Their webbed feet act like paddles for the ducks. A duck waddles instead of walking bdcause of its webbed feet. A duck's feet cannot feel cold even if it swims in icy cold water, since its feet have no nerves or blood vessels. Another special thing about ducks is that they have water-proof feathers. There is a special gland that produces oil near the duck's tail which spreads and covers the outer coat of the duck's feathers, making it water proof. Beneath the water-proof coat are fluffy and sot feathers to keep the duck warm. Ducks give out a special sound called quacking. However, not all ducks quack. The Wood Duck gives out a squeal instead. Ducks were once wild until they were domesticated by the Chinese. There are still many different species of wild ducks. Most of the farm ducks are of a species called "Pekin". Ducks are found in wetlands, marshes, ponds, rivers, lakes and streams. Some species of ducks migrate or travel long distance every year to breed. Usually they travel to warmer areas or where the water does not freese so that they can rest and raise their young. The distance may be thousands of miles away. Ducks are found everywhere in the world except the Antartica which is too cold for them. The duck's mouth is called a "bill". Normally it is broad and flat and has rows of fine notches along the edge called "larnellae". The larnellae helps the duck to grip its food so that it will not slip off. The males are usually the brightly colored ones, while the females are usually dull-colored and brown in color so that they can hide and camouflage from their enemies when they are in their nests.
The male uses its colorful plumage to attract females. However, they will lose or molt their colorful feathers when the females are busy hatching the eggs. The males will then look like the female in color and be unable to fly temporarily. Ducks usually look for a mate or partner in winter. The males will attract the females with their colorful plumage. The females will then lead the males to their breeding ground in spring. The breeding ground will usually be the place where she was hatched. The female will build a nest, lay 5-12 eggs and sit on them until they hatch. The eggs will normally hatch within 28 days. The mother duck will keep her brood of ducklings together to protect them from predators. Animals like raccoons, turtles, hawks, large fish and snakes will eat the ducklings. Ducklings are able to fly within 5-8 weeks. When the young can fly, all the ducks will gather in flocks on large bodies of water to migrate to their wintering home. When the ducks fly, they usually do so in a "V-shape" or long line. Information from kiddyhouse.com
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