Wild Duck / Mallard

Anas platyrhynchos

✓What to do NOW

1Use a towel or jacket to hold the wings against the body
2The beak can hurt: keep it away from your face
3Large box with holes, dry cloth on the bottom
4Ducklings without a mother: collect and contact CRAS — they die from hypothermia quickly
5Contact CRAS with experience in waterbirds

✗NEVER do this

✗Do not give bread — causes nutritional deficiencies and deformities (angel wing)
✗Do not leave ducklings in water without their mother: they drown if not warmed
✗Do not keep wild ducks as pets

⚠ Important note

Ducklings found alone without a mother in spring (April–June) are a thermal emergency: they lose heat rapidly. Wrap in a warm soft cloth (NOT wet) and contact CRAS immediately. Adult ducks hit by shotgun pellets or entangled in fishing line require urgent veterinary care for lead poisoning.

⚖ Legal protection

The mallard is a huntable species in Italy with a hunting calendar. Other wild duck species have different status — check with Provincial Police. Ducklings are always protected outside the hunting season.

Also known as

mallardwild ducktealgarganeywigeonpintailshovelerduckling

Did you find a wild duck / mallard right now?

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