Help with duck ID

Looking for help on ID of this duck. It was roosting on my daughter's deck yesterday AM in NW Wisconsin. They live next door to a state marsh/bird preserve. I have never seen a duck like this, nor can I find anything like it in my bird books. Is it possibly a domesticated duck?

Thanks for your help.

It looks like a young turkey vulture.

Might be a Moscovy duck. (S. M. Garver - Wildlife Photos - Adult Muscovy Ducks)

Might be a Moscovy duck. (S. M. Garver - Wildlife Photos - Adult Muscovy Ducks)

That's the closest I can find in my books also, but some features seem a little off. And I wouldn't expect a Muscovy anywhere near here.

Well, I'm no bird expert! The Wikipedia entry for the Moscovy duck notes that the bird is native to Mexico but does mention that its territory extends north into southern Canada.

Muscovy Ducks are kept in (and escape from !) wildfowl collections, so I am pretty sure it is a 'domesticated' Muscovy Duck - as they come from a restricted gene pool, they often display variations from the classic identification features, and of course wildfowl, especially captive ones, are notoriously prone to inbreeding. Are there any zoos, wildlife parks or suchlike places close to where it was found ? It may have emanated from one of those.

Well, I'm no bird expert! The Wikipedia entry for the Moscovy duck notes that the bird is native to Mexico but does mention that its territory extends north into southern Canada.

Did some more reading and if the internet is reliable, it looks like these Muscovys are a nuisance duck that are widely domesticated. I wonder if this wandered off from someone's farm to my daughter's house where it has now apparently been hanging around for a couple days.

Muscovy Ducks are kept in (and escape from !) wildfowl collections, so I am pretty sure it is a 'domesticated' Muscovy Duck - as they come from a restricted gene pool, they often display variations from the classic identification features, and of course wildfowl, especially captive ones, are notoriously prone to inbreeding. Are there any zoos, wildlife parks or suchlike places close to where it was found ? It may have emanated from one of those.

Tony, they are out in the boonies, so no obvious place this would have come from.

Could well be from someone's farm, then, as you surmise.

Could well be from someone's farm, then, as you surmise.

 

Yes Moscovy duck for sure. Here's a recipe: Muscovy Duck Breasts with Pomegranate Wine Sauce. :D ( Hahaha! )

First catch your duck . . .

Yes Moscovy duck for sure. Here's a recipe: Muscovy Duck Breasts with Pomegranate Wine Sauce. :D ( Hahaha! )

Mary,

Got a great chuckle out of your included recipe, which I won't forward to my daughter, who has basically adopted this thing and would likely see no humor in it.