Muscovy duck

Muscovy duck
A Muscovy duck stretching its wings in a freshwater spring
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Anseriformes
Family:	Anatidae
Genus:	Cairina
Species:	C. moschata
Binomial name
Cairina moschata (Linnaeus, 1758)
Subspecies
C. moschata sylvestris (Stephens, 1824) C. moschata domestica (Donkin, 1989)
Synonyms
Anas moschata Linnaeus, 1758

The Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) is a duck from the Americas, from Texas in the north to Uruguay in the south. Feral Muscovy ducks are found in New Zealand, Australia, and in Central and Eastern Europe.

Ecology

The Muscovy duck is non-migratory species which normally lives in forested swamps, lakes, streams, nearby grassland, and farm crops, and usually roost in trees at nighttime. The duck's diet consists of roots, stems, leaves, seeds of aquatic plants and grasses as well as terrestrial plants including agricultural crops obtained by grazing or dabbling in shallow water. It may also eat small fish, amphibians, reptiles, crustaceans, insects, millipedes, and worms. The Muscovy is an aggressive duck; males tend to fight over food, territory or mates. The females fight with each other less often. Some adults will peck at the ducklings if they are eating at the same food source.