What do the mallards eat in your part of the world?

The shad buffet happened in January. I'm no expert but assumed the mallards were eating the shad not due to a craving for protein, but because of the ease and availability.
 
Eric,

Mallard hens tend to shift to a diet with more protein starting with the pre-basic molt in January. It's thought that they are starting to increase protein and calcium intake in preparation for nesting. So the shad use would appear to be a function of both availability and a need for increased protein. Actually, one also needs to remember that all protein is not equal. Animal-based protein tends to be more balanced in amino acid content, than plant-based proteins. Part of the plant defensive strategy is to be unbalanced so animals have to forage on other foods to meet their needs. I regularly supplement the diets of my captives in the spring with fish and crawfish, and it always seems to help production.

Clint
 
I'll try it this way... If a test group of mallards (not deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc.) were presented a pan of popcorn, one of invertebrate stew, and another containing rotting salmon once during each season of the year, would one pan be favored more than the other in each season and would there be seasonal differences in their favored (selected) food...or would the same food be favored each time regardless of season? In other words, if it is pure opportunistic behavior, does it override programmed seasonal selectivity?
 
Clint

If the hens are "beefing up" for nesting would you expect fewer drakes choking down dead shad? I don't know if the the hens were more numerous than the drakes. Of course pair bonding that is starting to occur would keep them close despite diat I suspect.

Eric
 
I'll try it this way... If a test group of mallards (not deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc.) were presented a pan of popcorn, one of invertebrate stew, and another containing rotting salmon once during each season of the year, would one pan be favored more than the other in each season and would there be seasonal differences in their favored (selected) food...or would the same food be favored each time regardless of season? In other words, if it is pure opportunistic behavior, does it override programmed seasonal selectivity?
Click to expand...


I'm sorry to not have provided the exact information that you wanted with mallards, but I don't know the answer :). I doubt anyone does (but I'll hazard a guess that Clint knows better than I if they data exists for mallards specifically). Given what I know and quessing about mallards, food preference changes throughout the seasons (we know this). My guess is that in certain seasons they would be programmed to feed opportunistically. I would guess that it would be dramatically less likely that in times of plenty and low energy demand that mallards would activley consume carrion. This response could be driven by two things it could be that: 1) on an intrinsic cycle drives when they are more likely to eat carrion (they woudl have an urge to eat carrion or at least less distaste for it and this woudl not depend on thier hunger level) or 2) driven my metabolic demand (hunger) or 3) a combination of the two. So, yes they would be more likely to eat rotting salmon in some seasons, but that could be driven by two things - either intrinsic and regulated by photoperiod or driven by metabolic need.

Make sense?
 
Eric,

I wouldn't expect drakes to have food habits much different from the hens. The drake is following the hen after pairing. Time budgets differ somewhat with hens foraging more and drakes spending more time alert, presumably to allow the hen to forage more, but if the food is easily available and abundant, there's no reason to expect differences in food habits.

The mallard sex ratio tends to be about 60+ percent drakes, but there is some evidence of a latitudinal difference in sex ratios, and there are habitat differences associated with sex ratios.

Clint
 
Yep, makes sense. Just looking for opinions so no one answer is necessary.

A scenario that came to mind (as a result of Eric's observation) was flocks of mallards coming down from Alberta that, until the weather chases them farther south late in the fall, settle into a daily routine of loafing on larger waterbodies and feeding in the grain stubble. Even if a fish kill suddenly occurred at their loafing spot I would be surprised if they were to forego the daily trip(s) to the stubble in favor of at-hand fish carcasses.
 
It might be interesting if a guy took a bunch of different snacks to the local park duck hangout just to see how quickly they take advantage of weird options. Any volunteer researchers?

Mike
 
DJ,

Vegas has it 10:1 that a mallard WOULD not change food habits IF a shad kill of 1-2 in shad died and formed windrows they could feed on, that they would NOT change their field feeding habits. I Put $1,000,000,000 on that, and I will be able to retire! We are not talking about anything approaching a specialist.

Clint
 
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