The Muscovy duck is a large weird looking duck with a fabulous hairdo and lumpy patches of red skin that look like warts over its face that are called caruncles.
The oil glands in the Muscovy duck’s caruncles are very important. There are tiny, oily holes located in their caruncles, and when they groom themselves, they’ll preen and rub the oil all over their feathers. This waterproofs and protects them when they’re in the water.
Muscovy ducks do not quack they hiss, with the female giving a shrill call to her ducklings. Muscovy ducks come in a range of colours from black to pied (black and white), blue, silver and white.
We saw these at Fagan Park in Sydney.
