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#85689
At Brydon Lagoon in Langley last weekend I saw my first ducklings of the season. Mom was a Mallard with 6 little ones, while one little one was the typical Mallard patterning the other 5 were all yellow with a black stripe on their head. I spent some time on the internet couldn't find much on duckling descriptions. Wondering if these are in fact Mallard ducklings? If not what are they?

ImageMallard - 094A3991c1c by Sue Coastal Observer, on Flickr

ImageMallard - 094A3943a2c by Sue Coastal Observer, on Flickr
#85694
Looks like American Wigeon chicks, maybe the female Mallard picked up the Wigeon chicks or the chicks are hybrids as that happens often!

The other theory is a lot of mallards have some genes from domestic ducks in them due to farmyard escapes over the years diluting the gene pool.

Possibly be a genetic throwback of a domestic duck.

Many ducks adopt other species chicks that hang with the new mother.
By FYLegend
#85759
I went to Brydon today (first time) and there were two Mallard families with yellow ducklings. One is the brood of 6 you observed, the other was a brood of 4 with one yellow duckling. I couldn't get a clear view of this family while the brood of 6 came close by at one point.

I think maybe the parents carried a leucistic allele. The mother seems slightly different from mallards I usually see - a bit more yellow around the face and maybe slightly more stockily built (the latter I am not sure of since it can vary a lot with posture)
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