Australian Spotted Ducks

The beautiful Australian Spotted is a bantam breed of duck that has been in existence for just over 100 years. They were bred and refined in Pennsylvania over the span of about 20 years, from the 1920s-1940s. There were at least three breeders involved in the development of these ducks, and they were exhibited at poultry shows as early as 1928.

All three of the known breeders used the same foundation breeds to create the Australian Spotted; Mallards, Calls, Northern Pintails, and an unknown Australian wild duck. In each case they housed all of the birds together and let them interbreed at will. After a few generations, a distinct looking duck began to emerge. The best offspring were selected for further breeding and became the first generations of the Australian Spotted breed. They come in three different color varieties; greenhead, bluehead and silverhead. All three can be interbred and will still produce purebred ducks in one of the three varieties.

Australian Spotted drakes resemble mallards in coloring, but they have ruddy colored spots on their back and sides as well as a white chest and white flight feathers. Females appear to have “frosted” mallard coloring with many small dark spots sprinkled throughout their markings. Ducks will lay white, blue, or green eggs and they can produce anywhere from 50-125 eggs per year. They are reported to be the best layers in the bantam duck class.