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The mallard is a dabbling duck that breeds in temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, the Falkland Islands, and South Africa.

The Anatinae subfamily of the waterfowl family Anatidae includes this duck. Male birds (drakes) have a glossy green head and grey wings and belly, whereas female birds (hens or ducks) have mostly brown-speckled plumage. A speculum is a section of white-bordered black or iridescent blue feathers on the wings of both sexes; males have more blue speculum feathers than females.

The body of the mallard is 50–65 cm (20–26 in) long, with the body accounting for roughly two-thirds of the total length. The bill is 4.4 to 6.1 cm (1.7 to 2.4 in) long, and the wingspan is 81–98 cm (32–39 in). It weighs 0.7–1.6 kg (1.5–3.5 lb), making it slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks.

Mallards are social animals who prefer to congregate in groups or flocks of varying sizes. They live in wetlands and eat water plants and small animals. The main ancestor of most domestic duck breeds is this species.

On alternate days, the female lays eight to thirteen creamy white to greenish-buff spotless eggs. The incubation period is 27 to 28 days, and the fledging period is 50 to 60 days. The ducklings are precocial and capable of swimming almost immediately after hatching.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers the mallard a species of least concern (IUCN). Mallards, unlike many other waterfowl, are considered invasive species in some areas. It is a highly adaptable species, able to live and even thrive in urban areas that may have previously supported more localized, sensitive waterfowl species.

The non-migratory mallard interbreeds with indigenous wild ducks of closely related species by producing fertile offspring, causing genetic pollution. Many native waterfowl may become extinct due to the complete hybridization of various wild duck gene pools.

The wild mallard is the ancestor of most domestic ducks, and the domestic and feral mallard populations pollute its naturally evolved wild gene pool.

The mallard was one of many bird species first described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae in 1758. Anas platyrhynchos and Anas boschas are two binomial names he gave it.

Until 1906, when Einar Lönnberg determined that A. platyrhynchos had priority because it appeared on a previous page in the text, the latter was widely preferred. The scientific name is derived from the Latin Anas, which means “duck,” and the Ancient Greek o, platyrhynchus, which means “broad-billed” (from platys, which means “broad” and rhunkhos, which means “bill”). In 2013, the genome of Anas platyrhynchos was sequenced.

Mallard was originally used to refer to any wild drake, and it is still used in this way today. Although its true origin is unknown, it was derived from the Old French malart or mallart for “wild drake.” It’s possible that it’s related to, or at least influenced by, the Old High German masculine given name Madelhart, with clues in the alternative English forms “maudelard” and “mawdelard.” Masle (male) has also been suggested as a factor to consider.

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