Sexing Welsh Harlequin at 5 weeks

Welsh Harlequin Ducks at 5 weeks

Some may say this is attempting the impossible.  From research and hours staring at the colours of the feathers, they could very well be right.

What I have established is that Welsh Harlequin are adorable.  I love to watch them waggling their tails around the garden.  They are almost dog like.  The way the collapse on the floor on their belly, and then stretch the back legs out is definitely dog like.

I assessed the sex of the ducklings at 2-3 days old using the colour of beak method that is apparently 90% successful.  I mentioned this is a previous post, but to re cap, slate grey bills are male, lighter bills almost a hint of yellow with a dark tip are female.  On this basis I was expecting definitely one female, maybe two, and definitely three males.

I would add it is rather confusing at this young age as when older the females have slate grey beaks and the males yellow.  Yet it seems to be the reverse at a young age.

Looking at the group at 5 weeks, I am stumped and I know that I should not be trying to sex them until 15 weeks at least, but I can't resist.  The feathers can change drastically and so not reliable at all.
There is however a more reliable method, and that is listening to their quack!  Or if it's a male their rasp.

I have one duckling that has a loud quack, the bill is a lighter colour almost yellow and her colouring is a lot lighter, so I think definitely a female, she is a noisy quacker.  (I will wait for the abuse for this one).  

I'm waiting for the others to develop .  The males are not as noisy, problem is I think the others are not developed enough.   

They are still chirping in duckling mode, so I am hoping in the next week or so to hear a distinct change in the vocal department.  If not, I could be looking at four males and one female.

The duck second from the right in this photo is making a quacking sound at 5 weeks, and is much lighter in colour and has a lighter almost yellow beak, suggesting she is a female.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the photos.

Welsh Harlequin Ducklings at 2 days old

Welsh Harlequin Ducklings Video

Have you seen a ducklings tail waggle as it walks? It's not really its tail, but the whole rear end swaying side to side as it desperately tries to keep up with its siblings.
They are fascinating little birds, and I can see that they will easily become an obsession for me.
The fact is, they are not exactly little birds, even when they first hatch I was amazed at their size.  Now two weeks on they are a substantial little unit and I think mum, Treacle, is a lot more relaxed with them possible due to their size and agility.

They are still yellow at three weeks as you can see in the photos and video, but the dark colours are starting to creep through at the rear end.

I'm under no illusion I will need to create some room for them longer term and at the rate they are growing this could well be in the next two or three weeks.  I have an area that is currently covered with bushes.  So I will need to dig them out and level the ground.  But I am undecided on what to use for the floor.  I have seen pebbles, stone, and concrete used.  I know I can not leave bare earth.
There is also the decision on the enclosure.  The original intention was for them to live down on my allotment next door to the chickens, but with the break in and theft last month I will not be keeping any more of my pure breed birds on the plot.  So I need to accommodate the ducks in the back garden, certainly for the next 4 months or so whilst I keep looking to rent some land.  
I'm considering buying some poultry netting to create an area for them it's relatively cheap and quite flexible. 

  

  

Perfect weather for ducks

To say the weather has been changeable down here in South Wales is a bit of an understatement.  Today is a good day for ducks, quite apt as Treacle, my seemingly forever broody hen, has delivered yet another group of newborns.

This time it is ducklings, Welsh Harlequin, established as its own breed from the Khaki campbell back in the 1940's.

They are on the Rare Breed Survival Trust's Poultry breed at risk list.  I have no idea why, as they look fantastic and are brilliant layers of eggs, (coming from the campbell breed no doubt helps).

Treacle has hatched 5 out of 6 eggs.  Fantastic work as it did seem a challenge for her to cover all the eggs, but never the less, she did it.  The sixth chick was fully formed but just did not hatch, perhaps had a problem or lack of strength.

It is fantastic news for me, especially off the back of the recent theft of 13 of my chickens.  It does however present me with a bit of a problem with space.  I am reluctant to move them or any of my stock back down to my plot as I'm sure it will be watched closely by whoever took all the other birds.  I have successfully intergrated the crested legbar into my back garden hens. (more on this in another post)  However, having freed up that run, Custard, the most famous veteran hen is eating all the eggs being laid. So she has been isolated.  Cue one very noisey and objectionable hen.  My other run and coop is housing three silver lace Wyandotte bantam hens.  So I am full.  In fact overcapacity, double booked you may say.

I have some garden left (just), but with two coops and two runs, plus two double tier rabbit hutches housing my 17 quail, the garden is becoming a B&B for poultry.

My best option is to build a Heath Robinson approach run to extend the broody coop for the ducklings and treacle.  At only 2 days old it is not critical now, but I've no doubt they will grow fast and need more space soon.  

As always, I am trying to guess the sex of the ducklings already.  Having done some research it appears it may be possible with 90% accuracy, to predict the sex at only a few days old.  The colour of the bill on the ducklings is the key area.  The females have a pink coloured bill with a dark spot at the tip, with the males having a dark grey bill all over.

90% accuracy is not bad, but it's not guaranteed so I will be interested to see results.  Using this technique I should end up with two ducks and three drakes.  I bet the one that did not hatch was a duck, but that's life isn't it.

That is the end of hatching for me during 2013.  I will be posting photos of the ducklings as they grow.  My project over the autumn and winter is to find and rent some land locally. That way my wife can have her garden back "almost" animal free.

Thanks for reading.