Muscovy duck

species of bird

The Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) is a duck from the Americas, from Texas in the north to Uruguay in the south. Feral Muscovy ducks are found in New Zealand, Australia, and in Central and Eastern Europe.[1][2]

Muscovy duck
A Muscovy duck stretching its wings in a freshwater spring
Scientific classification
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Species:
C. moschata
Binomial name
Cairina moschata
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Subspecies
  • C. moschata sylvestris (Stephens, 1824)
  • C. moschata domestica (Donkin, 1989)
Synonyms

Anas moschata Linnaeus, 1758


Ecology

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The Muscovy duck is non-migratory species which normally lives in forested swamps, lakes, streams, nearby grassland, and farm crops,[3] and usually roost in trees at nighttime. The duck's diet consists of roots, stems, leaves, seeds of aquatic plants and grasses as well as terrestrial plants including agricultural crops obtained by grazing or dabbling in shallow water. It may also eat small fish, amphibians, reptiles, crustaceans, insects, millipedes, and worms.[4][5] The Muscovy is an aggressive duck; males tend to fight over food, territory or mates. The females fight with each other less often. Some adults will peck at the ducklings if they are eating at the same food source.

References

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  1. "Poultry Breeds - Muscovy Duck — Breeds of Livestock, Department of Animal Science". afs.okstate.edu. Retrieved 2021-06-17.
  2. "Muscovy - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics". Sciencedirect.com. Retrieved 2021-06-17.
  3. Accordi, Iury Almeida; Barcellos, André (2006). "Composição da avifauna em oito áreas úmidas da Bacia Hidrográfica do Lago Guaíba, Rio Grande do Sul". Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia - Brazilian Journal of Ornithology (in Portuguese). 14 (2): 101–115. Archived from the original on 2014-11-08. Retrieved 2014-11-08.
  4. "Cairina moschata (Wild Muscovy Duck)" (PDF). Sta.uwi.edu. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  5. "Cairina moschata (Muscovy duck)". Animal Diversity Web.