How to Identify a Female Black Duck

Black ducks are difficult to identify the gender of because the male and the female look very similar. These wild ducks breed in the upper Mississippi River basin, and range north into Canada. They are most commonly found in coastal wetlands of the Maritime Provinces, Lake Erie and the St. Lawrence River in Canada, and the mid-Atlantic coast of the U.S. Their numbers have been falling since the 1950s, with hybridization with mallard ducks being of particular concern. With careful observation, you can identify the sex of a black duck.

Instructions

1. • 1

     Check the color of the bill. Males have a bright yellow bill. Females have a greenish, mottled olive-colored bill.

   • 2

     Examine the thickness of the neck. Males have a thicker neck and fluff their feathers out more frequently than females.

   • 3

     Listen for the call. The male's call is a soft grunt or whistle. The female's call sounds similar to the quacks of many other ducks.