# Hermaphroduck



## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

Got a really cool bird today. This is not a drake mallard:










It's a hen! Check out the bill compared to a couple of normal drakes.










She's apparently so old she's quit producing estrogen, so the testosterone in her system took over. She is now at the taxidermist. Score!


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## Labs2 (Dec 15, 2013)




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## goosefreak (Aug 20, 2009)

Nice shoot! side note: I see you are a man who picks up your empty's too! good on you! we need more of that


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## JuniorPre 360 (Feb 22, 2012)

Actually, this is a little interesting.


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## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

Here's a pic showing her underside:


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

What makes you think it's a hen? It looks like a drake to me. Without looking in it's cloaca I don't know how you could tell the difference on this one.


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## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

longbow said:


> What makes you think it's a hen? It looks like a drake to me. Without looking in it's cloaca I don't know how you could tell the difference on this one.


Drakes have olive or yellow bills, hens have orange bills w/black saddles.


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## brettb (Aug 23, 2009)

A duck with a little different bill and you're putting it on the wall? I'd have wasted a lot of money at the Taxidermist if I mounted every duck with a little "something" different. 

To each their own


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Does it have an Adams apple?


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

I got a drake mallard with a gray bill.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

bug doc said:


> Drakes have olive or yellow bills, hens have orange bills w/black saddles.


Cool. I learnt something today.


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## Pumpgunner (Jan 12, 2010)

I don't see a hen in that bird....I know that hens that aren't laying any more can start to take on drake colors but I really don't think that's the case with this bird. I have seen a few old hens that have green heads and orange/black bills but I've never seen a hermaphrodite/old hen with double curls and a 99% drake body. The ones I've seen still have some hen coloring to their bodies, and aren't quite as dark grey on the back as a drake is. I'm no biologist though so I could be wrong! Only 100% sure way to know is gut it and see if it has nads.....


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## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

brettb said:


> A duck with a little different bill and you're putting it on the wall? I'd have wasted a lot of money at the Taxidermist if I mounted every duck with a little "something" different.
> 
> To each their own


If it were just a 'little' different I wouldn't bother. I've seen old hens that have started exhibiting male plumage before, but never one to this extent. It's the totality of her transformation that intrigues me enough to put her on the wall.

I guess it's possible that this is just a male with a genetic anomaly that caused its bill to be a hen's, but a hormonally imbalanced female seems to be a much higher probability (after all, all females could potentially end up this way if they lived long enough). I couldn't find any references online to wild drake mallards with orange/black bills (at least any that didn't also show obvious park-duck traits), but plenty of references to older hens changing their plumage.


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## tigerpincer (Dec 5, 2009)

If you have it at a good and knowledgeable taxidermist he should be able to clear it up for you when he skins it. Let us know what he says. If it's a hen than I say that would be a pretty cool mount.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Was it so old it's teeth were worn down?


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## dkhntrdstn (Sep 7, 2007)

sorry but to me that a full on drake mallard there. I dont see one thing on it that says it a hen mallard.


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## utahgolf (Sep 8, 2007)

I wonder how many hens I've shot that have completely transformed into drakes! olive bill and all.... I better mount all the greenheads I shoot just in case! ;-)


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## JuniorPre 360 (Feb 22, 2012)

I've been doing a little research on your duck. The ones I have personally seen have just a little bit of green on the head and small curls just starting. Yours has a full blown plumage of a drake. I found one like yours at this link, about half way down the page. http://www.nwwings.com/gallery.php He even labeled it as an old hen.

If you wanted the absolute best opinion, you need to get a hold of Patrick Pitt (The Waterfowler). He's the nicest guy on the face of this earth. He's also the most knowlegable person when it comes to waterfowl. He's been there and done that with everything. He's a legend in this sport. I'm sure if you were to email him a picture, he'd give you his opinion and an explanation on your duck. Of his 850+ mounts, he may even have one identical to yours. I'd email him, since he's always out somewhere killing birds. http://www.thewaterfowlerjournal.com/ Let us know what he tells you.


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## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

JuniorPre 360 said:


> I've been doing a little research on your duck. The ones I have personally seen have just a little bit of green on the head and small curls just starting. Yours has a full blown plumage of a drake. I found one like yours at this link, about half way down the page. http://www.nwwings.com/gallery.php He even labeled it as an old hen.
> 
> If you wanted the absolute best opinion, you need to get a hold of Patrick Pitt (The Waterfowler). He's the nicest guy on the face of this earth. He's also the most knowlegable person when it comes to waterfowl. He's been there and done that with everything. He's a legend in this sport. I'm sure if you were to email him a picture, he'd give you his opinion and an explanation on your duck. Of his 850+ mounts, he may even have one identical to yours. I'd email him, since he's always out somewhere killing birds. http://www.thewaterfowlerjournal.com/ Let us know what he tells you.


Thanks for your comments. I also found that photo on the nwwings site, along with several others that run the whole spectrum from just a few male traits to complete male plumage. The one constant seems to be the orange/black bill.

We'll know for sure once Jeff skins out the bird (With his schedule, however, that will be some time down the road). For now, I'm pretty confident we've correctly identified her gender.


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## Hunter_17 (Mar 15, 2008)

So did you count that as a hen towards your limit or a drake?


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## bug doc (Apr 19, 2008)

Hunter_17 said:


> So did you count that as a hen towards your limit or a drake?


Both. :grin:

If a warden had pressed it, I probably would have counted her as a hen. During opening weekend - when everything is still eclipse - we separate genders using the bill color. I can't see how this would be any different. :?


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## kev (Feb 7, 2008)

I'm not real sure any more, I used to be on top of stuff like this. I do know that it's a phenomenon that's specific to mallards, it doesn't happen in other species to the best of my knowledge. I do know that I've been fooled before and had to do the 'ol finger in the north port, trick to be certain.

Here are a few that I've encountered over the years. Both had significantly more "hen" markings that yours, but who knows??





Later,
Kev


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