Indian ducks are the difference between a drake and a duck. Indian ducks: how to distinguish a drake from a duck? Main advantages and differences in appearance
Which combines many attractive features: she is beautiful, unpretentious, silent, has excellent immunity and maternal instinct, she has delicious dietary meat, which is even used to prepare delicacies! In the article you will find a description of the varieties of the breed, its weight and taste qualities, you will find photos of adults and ducklings, as well as educational videos.
Muscovy duck has several names. The main thing - musk - comes from the smell of fat secreted from their growths on the head, which resembles musk. Others believe that the name comes from "Muisque", the name of a tribe of Indians from Colombia. The most common is the Turkey Duck, because many believe that this breed is a cross between a turkey and a duck due to the peculiar growths on the head (especially in the male). However, this is not so, the Indoutka is one of the varieties of wood duck, because it can easily do without a pond.
You can often find another name – Mute, or even “Mute”. They are called this because of their calm nature and silence, because they are always silent, unlike their relatives, or can only create a dull hissing sound. And the last of the original names is the Barbary duck, which is how the French named the breed.
Breed overview
This spectacular bird is distinguished by its excellent weight and decent egg production, so it will take its rightful place in your farm among other animals and birds.
Origin
The Barbary duck was domesticated by the ancient Aztecs. The Indian Musk is then found in South America and Mexico, where wild Muskies are still common today. Indoutka was brought to the territory of the USSR in 1981 from the GDR, and 7 years later - from France, after which it is actively grown in Russia. There is also a version that Indoutka was brought to Europe by the English trading company of Elizabeth I, called the “Moscow Company”.
Appearance
Indian ducks have a dense, elongated body with a wide chest and a short neck. The head is large, and in drakes the crown is covered with feathers. A distinctive feature of the breed are bright red growths on the head (they are also called “corals”), of which males have much more than females. The Indoutka drake can be recognized by its more powerful body and, accordingly, greater weight.
The wings of Indo-ducks are massive, long, and fit tightly to the body. The tail is also long, slightly raised at the end. The legs are short and their color can range from pale pink to brown and black. The claws are very sharp; day-old ducklings can grab hold of one paw and hang on the hand. The color of the plumage is very different, then we will look at the main types of color and present some in the photo.
- . The eyes are grey-blue and the beak is light pink, slightly lighter at the tip.
- Black and white duck. The eyes are brownish in color.
- White with a pattern. The main color is white, the sides, tail, wings, and neck can be black. The eyes are light, brownish, the beak is black, red towards the tip.
- Brown and white breed. The main shade is chocolate with white patterns in the neck, head and sternum. The beak is red.
- Brown duck. The main color is chocolate brown, the tail and wings have a greenish tint. The beak is red with a dark tip, the eyes are brown.
- Blue color. The main color is white with a bluish tint, some feathers have a dark edging. The eyes are brown, the beak is almost black.
- Black duck. The main color is purple, with a greenish tint on the back and wings. The eyes are brown.
How to distinguish Indian ducklings by gender?
The sex of ducklings should be determined immediately after birth, before the structure of the cloaca changes in the chicks. To do this, ducklings are taken one by one left hand and head to yourself. Using the index finger of the right hand and the thumb of the left hand, stretch the cloaca and turn it slightly inside out so that the genital organ is visible. In the male it is pronounced, has the shape of a tubercle (a rudiment of the penis), and in females it is flat or hemispherical.
The second method is to detect an expansion in the larynx, which has the shape of a ball. Only male chicks have this. However, this requires certain knowledge of the anatomical features of Shipun ducklings and experience. In the next video you can compare ducklings and adult Inducks.
Productivity
Muscovy duck is perfect for those who breed it for meat. At home, the bird reaches good weight: an adult drake grows up to 5-6 kg, and the weight of a duck is 3.5-4.5 kg, so the breed belongs to the meat category. Indoutka has delicate dietary red meat, which does not have a specific taste, like waterfowl ducks, and resembles game (more about this in the video).
In France, poultry is fed to prepare a delicious dish - foie gras, and is also used to produce medicinal product Oscillococcinum. If ducklings are well fed, slaughter can be carried out as early as 13 weeks, but they are ready for breeding from 20 weeks.
Barbary duck produces not only tasty meat, but also large eggs with a bright yolk. – 70-100 eggs per year, which greatly depends on the characteristics of maintenance and feeding. The weight of one egg is on average 75 grams. Females make good brood hens. In the next video, an experienced breeder will tell you in more detail about the advantages of breeding these ducklings, their weight and the taste characteristics of the breed.
If we're talking about about adult individuals, to determine the sex, it will be enough just to look at the duck and: the male will be much larger than the female, and this will immediately catch the eye. The average weight of an adult drake is about 5-6 kg, while females at the same age weigh only 1.5-3 kg. Moreover, males are not only larger, but also much more massive: they have a thick and long neck, a wide chest, and powerful wings.
Look also at the bird's head. If you see rough skin extending behind the eyes, it means that this is a male. If the skin is more delicate, light and located only between the eyes and beak, we are talking about a female. Ducks also boast a graceful rather than powerful neck arch. However, their plumage is much more modest: the color of the feathers of males, as a rule, is brighter and more varied, because with their appearance, drakes should attract ducks.
How to distinguish a male Indian duck from a female: additional tricks
Since the genital organ of small Indian drakes is only 1-2 mm long, and it is quite difficult to see, you can use another option for determining the sex of ducklings. Firstly, males have plumage several shades darker than females, and this can be seen if you put several ducklings of both sexes side by side. Secondly, drakes very quickly become aggressive: already one day after birth they begin to fight with other ducklings, and also if they grow up with them. Young males often offend the birds they grow up with, even if we are talking about larger individuals. Females, on the contrary, behave more calmly, do not start fights and would rather hide in a corner or run away than take a fight.
There is one more interesting difference between females and males, and it lies in the characteristics of behavior. As a rule, drakes always let the ducks go ahead, while they themselves move slightly behind. This applies to walking on land, and even flying. The only exception is when a duck is hatching eggs, and the drakes, left without their females, walk in small groups, alternately letting each other pass first.
IN lately breeding poultry becomes very hot topic not only for rural residents, but also for city dwellers who have ducks or geese on their summer cottages. This is due not only to the desire to have tasty meat on the table, but also to know for sure that it is environmentally friendly. The choice often stops at domestic duck, which is unpretentious in food and quickly gains weight. It’s just that new poultry farmers face difficult question, how to understand who is who in a duck family and how to distinguish a drake from a duck.
Instructions
Definition of larynx development
Take the duckling in your right hand and feel it chest. Move his head to the side, slightly raise his beak so that his neck is level. Attach thumb left hand to support the latter cervical vertebrae. Apply light pressure index finger left hand on the front of the duckling breast and define a triangle, formed by bones clavicle, anterior end sternum and a spatula.
Determine whether a tubercle approximately 4 mm in diameter is palpable in the center of this triangle, moving when the beak moves up and down; if so, then it is a drake. In females this tubercle is absent.
Voice detection
Take the bird in your hands, this will provoke it to scream. Listen to the bird's voice. The duck will begin to quack shrilly, while the drake will make loud hissing sounds mixed with whistling. Such vocal data are explained by the presence of a sac-like expansion in the fork of the trachea.
Definition by genitals
The male duck has one anatomical feature that is not inherent in most birds - a pseudopenis, which is capable of turning outward. This method, of course, requires certain skills.
Stretch the outside anus using the thumb of the left hand and the index and thumb right hand.
Place the thumb of your right hand on the edge of the cloaca and move upward, this will open the cloaca and expose the drake's genital organ in the form of a curved fold measuring 3 - 4 mm.
You can simply pull the tail towards the back, in most cases this will be enough to detect gender differences.
Determination by appearance.
You can visually try to distinguish a drake from a duck with 2-3.
Features of keeping in the household
The instinct of nesting in trees has not passed without a trace; domesticated ducks prefer to sit not on the ground or a bedding of straw, but on a perch. Only a chicken roost is not suitable for ducks; they need to arrange a place with a log. Otherwise, unpretentious Indian ducks can be kept in the same conditions as chickens. They are usually fed with wet mash 2-3 times a day, which includes chopped grass, table scraps and grain mixture. Indian ducks eat crushed corn with particular pleasure, but dry barley can be dangerous for them. It must be pre-soaked and given along with water.
If there is a body of water nearby, then the Indian ducks will use it, but they do not feel any particular need for water. And in cold weather, closer to autumn, such swimming is even contraindicated, since Indian ducks do not have the necessary amount of fat, like other waterfowl, and the feathers can simply freeze. Indian ducks have enviable resilience - they are not afraid of any infections. They gain weight as quickly as Peking ducks, with which they are sometimes crossed if they are kept only for meat. The individuals obtained from crossing will be infertile. Indian ducks are good hens and caring mothers. Only the first 3 days will require human help in feeding the offspring, since the ducklings are completely helpless in this regard, and they will have to be fed by force.
To say ancestor about the ancestor of the Indian duck is not entirely correct. After all, the musky duck is still found in nature. They live in swampy places in Peru, Uruguay, Mexico, Argentina, where they live in small flocks.
Wild Indian ducks, photo
Why did the wild musk duck get such a name? There are two versions: the first - because of the growths on the head, similar to those of a turkey, that is, the head of a musky duck is similar to the head of a turkey; second - Indians Latin America in ancient times, these birds were the first to be tamed and domesticated, and the name Indo-duck is a shortened version of the combination “Indian duck”.
Why is it profitable to raise indo-ducks?
If in other poultry the mortality rate of chicks is very high, then in indo-ducks more than 90% of the chicks survive. To start breeding indo-ducks, it is enough to remodel a ready-made poultry barn for keeping them with minor amendments. Keeping Indian ducks in winter is absolutely not troublesome if you provide them with a dry floor with a thick, warm grass bedding and protect them from drafts.
Indian ducks grow very quickly when proper feeding– after 2 months the poultry can already be processed into meat.
Turkey meat is lean, tender, and almost cholesterol-free. Indian ducks are calm and trusting birds; they do not become hysterical when a person enters their area or barn.
They provide not only tasty meat, but also healthy eggs.
Beginning of breeding indo-ducks, how to choose them correctly, how to distinguish a female from a male indo-duck
Breed new look Birds, if they haven’t done just that, are better off buying adult birds. There are many types of indo-ducks, they vary greatly in feather color, but the appearance of all indo-ducks is the same: a powerful body with a wide chest, a shorter neck than other ducks, short legs, with large membranes between the toes, wings not very large, but powerful.
Regarding color: there is an opinion that multi-colored ducks are not very good, that many colors in the feather cover are an indicator of unwanted impurities. The most popular are the black and white Indian ducks, which have feathers on their bodies. white, black spots on the wings, tail and abdomen.
For breeding you will need males and females, how to choose the right female and male? The male (drake) is almost twice as large as the female, the neck is longer, and there is a growth on the beak that resembles a turkey.
photo of male and female Indian duck
If you name the optimal figure for how many females and males to keep - four females for one male. If suddenly there are a lot of males in the process of training with Indian ducks, then the minimum ratio is two females and one male.
Arrangement of a barn and area for indo-ducks
The first rule that must be followed when arranging housing for Indian ducks is space; these birds do not like cramped conditions. How long to keep indo-ducks, twenty or one hundred, is an individual question, but indoors for square meter there should not be more than three birds.
The second important detail is that these birds have poor contact with other domestic birds. They don’t fight with geese or chickens, no, they just get nervous and stop eating. So it is better to keep turkey ducks separate from the rest of the bird.
Indo-ducks do not tolerate drafts well, and at the same time they need a lot of fresh air. It is simple to provide both - both the door and the window of the room should face the side of the frequently blowing wind: there will be no draft, and fresh air secured.
Indo-ducks hate dampness in the house, especially on the floor. The musky duck begins to get sick and dies if the floor in the room is covered with damp sawdust and is dirty. You constantly need to loosen the floor covering and remove dirty sawdust. Best option floor covering – small absolutely dry wooden shavings, the thickness of the cover is not less than 5 cm.
Birdhouse for an Indian duck, photo
The area where the Indian ducks will walk should have sand and a shallow trough. Very sensitive to indoor humidity, these birds still love water and will happily splash around in the trough.
It would be nice to have grass on the site, which the Indian ducks will nibble with appetite. There will be vegetation on the site - this means there is somewhere to dig for worms and larvae, which Indian ducks adore.
Walking area for Indian ducks, photo
A separate topic is what to do to prevent Indian ducks from flying outside the site? The simplest and most banal answer is that it is better to feed them; a heavy Indian duck flies with difficulty, and a large and well-fed drake will not try to take off at all.
The best remedy for bird escapes will always be a high net, it is even preferable to a fence - Indian ducks are southern birds by origin, and the more sun that falls on their area, the better.
What to feed turkey ducks at home: feeding habits of adult birds and chicks
Like any poultry, the basis of the Indian duck's diet is cereals. Most of all, these birds love corn and any grains. They eat boiled potatoes and well-cooked beets with pleasure.
Food waste from the home table, feed yeast, industrial waste such as molasses and stillage (wheat pomace from the production of alcohol), any greens and vegetables - everything is suitable for feeding indo-ducks.
A mash of the above is prepared, but its moisture content should not be very high. The limit is 15-18% water for dry components. Mash of porridge and chopped greens is a delicacy for Indian ducks. They love it. But you need to prepare a fresh portion every time.
On the first day, only hatched chicks are fed a finely chopped hard-boiled egg mixed with milk (they cannot drink).
On the second day, bran is added to this mixture. In subsequent days, grated cottage cheese and finely crushed wheat grain are gradually added. By the end of the first week, you can add chopped meat scraps and boiled potatoes to the baby food. On the tenth day, indo-ducks are allowed to be switched to an adult diet.
Indian duck chicks, photo
Indo-ducks are fed frequently, even when they are older. Very young chicks are fed 6 times a day. TO one month old reduce the number of meals to 4, adults are fed 3 times a day.
Indo-duck laying eggs and incubating chicks
When do Indian ducks start laying eggs? As soon as it gets warm, in March-April. Female Indian ducks, ready to lay eggs, are very nervous. Therefore, during this period you should not make loud noise near the poultry house.
A good idea is to build a house for each duck in the house made of thin plywood with a hole so that she can climb in and build a nest.
Female Indian ducks are very curious. There are times when they occupy someone else's nest and begin to lay eggs there. Or they sit on other people’s eggs in order to hatch them, but forget about their own.
The female will not have in the house great overview and will only take care of his offspring. If it is not possible to build houses, plastic lattice vegetable boxes with a high side will be suitable for nests.
Egg collection must be suspended if you want the turkey to begin hatching chicks. Gradually, the female can lay up to 20 eggs. We take 10 pieces, don’t touch the rest - then she starts hatching. Indoor chickens hatch for a long time - more than a month.
Indian duck eggs in a nest, photo
Important - the quality of meat, eggs and fertility of turkey ducks drops sharply from closely related contacts. Therefore, drakes need to be updated regularly, preferably every season.
If you strive to eat healthy and tasty and love to breed poultry, indo-ducks will be the best option.
Indo-duck meat is now in high demand in prestigious restaurants. So there will be no problems with selling surplus meat if the number of turkey ducks on the farm is large.
Watch a video about Indian ducks.
At first glance, judging solely by their names, it seems that the duck and drake belong completely to various types birds and have nothing in common with each other. But this is a big misconception, because both of them belong to the same species as a female and a male, respectively.
Often among beginners in the field of poultry farming there is confusion between a duck and an indo-duck. In this case, the question should be examined more carefully.
The fact is that the duck unites about thirty varieties of its type in Russia alone, including the Indian duck. In fact, there are many more of them. But in this article we will take a closer look at exactly this species (another name is the musky duck) and how to distinguish a drake from it.
If the described factors do not seem enough to know how to distinguish an indo-duck from a drake, then you can turn to the issue of difference in more depth. For example, the sounds made by both birds: the female is more vocal. The drake only tends to hiss heart-rendingly.
What is an Indian duck? Its official name is Muscovy duck. It is generally accepted that the oldest individuals of this species are capable of secreting some fat in the fleshy part of the head. Its smell is musky. This bird is bred in household, because there are enough reasons for this.
Firstly, turkey eggs are edible, but the meat has different dietary and taste properties. Secondly, this breed does not require a body of water nearby. And finally, the Muscovy duck is a native homebody, which means that it is impossible to lose a brood of a bird that has set off in an unknown direction.
The drake, in turn, is a male duck. Among the varieties, it can be either a wild bird or a domesticated one.
Now you should answer the question “how to distinguish a duck from a drake.” First of all, what especially catches your eye when you see such a pair is the size of the birds. The male will weigh more than the female. The maximum difference for both is always from half to one kilogram. Such are their natural proportions. In addition, the drake’s body is much wider, as befits a male.
Further, another difference between them is the color of the plumage. Indian women look much more modest. This is explained quite simply: as females, they are supposed to take care of their offspring without attracting unnecessary attention. What will protect the chicks from various threats of large and scary world. Males, on the contrary, are required to show off all the colors of their feathers to attract the attention of females.
Duck and drake, their differences are manifold, if you look into this issue in more detail. These include the bend of the neck: in females it is much more graceful, in males it is wide. Similar anatomical features are quite natural, because in most cases it is the females who are distinguished by grace and beauty, while the males get strength and power.
It is important to know that until a certain age, it is impossible to distinguish the sex of birds from the first glance at them. Only after three months life, their external differences begin to form. If, before this time, you need to find out the sex of the chick, then you can do some simple manipulations. To do this, you just need to raise the tail higher, exposing an organ called the pseudopenis. Its presence or absence will determine gender.
In conclusion, we need to add a behavioral feature in the difference between the Indian duck and the drake. Most often, the male lets the female go ahead, whether moving by air or water. But there is a nuance here that can be confusing - the nesting period of the duck. At this time, the drake can take a fellow drake as a companion during walks while his mate is absent.
This large breed ducks, which are naturally distributed in the area South America and Mexico.
It was domesticated by humans, this happened several centuries ago. In those days, the Muscovy duck was kept by the ancient Aztecs. Today it is bred all over the world.
Distinctive Features
Indo ducks are often confused with representatives of other breeds. But in fact, distinguishing them is not difficult.
The main difference between the musk duck and the mulard is the presence of fleshy growths on the head. The latter has a growth on its beak, reminiscent of the growth on the beak of a Muscovy duck, but it is much smaller in size. Both breeds have long tails.
Muscovy duck can also be distinguished from Peking duck by the presence of growths above the beak and in the eye area.
In addition, the difference in the orientation of the body is clearly visible - in Indian ducks it is located horizontally, parallel to the ground, while the body of the Peking duck is raised at an angle of about 30 degrees.In addition, indo-ducks have longer wings and tail.
Crossbreeding with birds of other species
Contrary to popular belief, Ducks cannot be crossed with birds of other species. Just as some consider the Indian duck to be a cross between a duck and a turkey due to the fleshy growths located on the head, others think that the mulard is obtained by crossing it with. But that's not true.
Ducks and geese cannot give birth. Even if the female lays an egg, it will be unfertilized.
In the markets you can sometimes find scammers offering chicks with assurances that they are a hybrid breed that will grow into a duck weighing more than 6 kilograms, but you should not believe them.This is a breed that is well suited for keeping in a small backyard. She is clean and very quiet, so creates a minimum of inconvenience. Its meat is much less fatty than that of ordinary ducks, which descended from the mallard. But you need to be prepared for the fact that it gains weight more slowly and does not reach the size that is typical for ducks of other breeds.
