Mallards frequently interbreed with their closest relatives in the genus Anas, such as the American black duck, and also with species more distantly related, such as the northern pintail, leading to various hybrids that may be fully fertile. Masle (male) has also been proposed as an influence. It may be related to, or at least influenced by, an Old High German masculine proper name Madelhart, clues lying in the alternative English forms 'maudelard' and 'mawdelard'. It was derived from the Old French malart or mallart for 'wild drake' although its true derivation is unclear. The name mallard originally referred to any wild drake, and it is sometimes still used this way. The genome of Anas platyrhynchos was sequenced in 2013. The scientific name comes from Latin Anas, 'duck' and Ancient Greek πλατυρυγχος, platyrhynchus, 'broad-billed' (from πλατύς, platys, 'broad' and ρυγχός, rhunkhos, 'bill'). platyrhynchos had priority, as it appeared on an earlier page in the text. The latter was generally preferred until 1906 when Einar Lönnberg established that A. He gave it two binomial names: Anas platyrhynchos and Anas boschas. The mallard was one of the many bird species originally described in the 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae by Carl Linnaeus. Taxonomy and evolutionary history Īn American black duck (upper left) and a male mallard (lower right) in eclipse plumage This species is the main ancestor of most breeds of domestic duck, and its naturally evolved wild gene pool has been genetically polluted by the domestic and feral mallard populations. Complete hybridisation of various species of wild duck gene pools could result in the extinction of many indigenous waterfowl. The non-migratory mallard interbreeds with indigenous wild ducks of closely related species through genetic pollution by producing fertile offspring. It is a very adaptable species, being able to live and even thrive in urban areas which may have supported more localised, sensitive species of waterfowl before development. Unlike many waterfowl, mallards are considered an invasive species in some regions. The mallard is considered to be a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The ducklings are precocial and fully capable of swimming as soon as they hatch. Incubation takes 27 to 28 days and fledging takes 50 to 60 days. The female lays 8 to 13 creamy white to greenish-buff spotless eggs, on alternate days.

Mallards live in wetlands, eat water plants and small animals, and are social animals preferring to congregate in groups or flocks of varying sizes. It is often slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks, weighing 0.7–1.6 kg (1.5–3.5 lb). The mallard is 50–65 cm (20–26 in) long, of which the body makes up around two-thirds the length.

Both sexes have an area of white-bordered black or iridescent blue feathers called a speculum on their wings males especially tend to have blue speculum feathers. Males have purple patches on their wings, while the females (hens or ducks) have mainly brown-speckled plumage.

This duck belongs to the subfamily Anatinae of the waterfowl family Anatidae. The mallard ( / ˈ m æ l ɑːr d, ˈ m æ l ər d/) or wild duck ( Anas platyrhynchos) is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the 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. Possibly extant and introduced (seasonality uncertain)

Flocks of mallards