Bird Magic: Wisdom of the Ancient Goddess for Pagans & Wiccans - Sandra Kynes 2016
Duck: American Pekin Duck, Mallard, Wood Duck
The Profiles
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
With legs set back on their bodies, ducks are ungainly on land but powerful swimmers. They are also strong fliers. The common name duck comes from the Anglo-Saxon duce, which means “diver.” 62 However, not all ducks are divers. The species included here are called dabbling ducks, which means they feed in the water by tipping forward to get at underwater plants rather than diving.
The mallard is the ancestor of nearly all domestic breeds and the most familiar of all ducks. The name comes from Latin masculus, which means “male.” 63 However, what we consider as the standard duck quack is the sound of the female mallard. Unlike most waterfowl, wood ducks perch and nest in trees and are comfortable flying through woods. Like the cuckoo, they often lay their eggs in other birds’ nests.
The Egyptians raised ducks for food and commonly used them for sacrifice. While ducks sometimes represented the evil spirits of the marshes, they also symbolized fertility. The Romans kept ducks and even hatched their eggs in incubators. The goddess Sequana of Gaul was often depicted in a duck-shaped boat. Throughout European folklore, hearing a duck quack was an omen of prosperity and ducks fluttering their wings was a sign that it would soon rain.
I couldn’t resist adding the domestic duck to this book because I had a pet duck when I was a child. The first white Pekin ducks (also called Peking ducks) were imported into North America in 1873.64 The following year they were bred in New York and were called Long Island ducks.
Magical Workings
Since ancient times, ducks represented abundance and comfort. Use a picture of a duck in spells to draw on this age-old symbolism and to bring prosperity into your life. Being birds of the water, ducks are associated with emotions and can help bring clarity and foster affection. Call on the female duck for nurturing energy and the male for relieving stress.
As a symbol of fertility, the duck engenders fidelity and communication in marriage. Duck is a bird of support, providing protection as well as attracting opportunities. It is also a helper in shamanic work when seeking connection with past lives, guidance, and transformation. Through its familiarity, duck provides comfort and support.
Make Connection
Connect with duck energy by keeping a little rubber ducky in your bathroom. This slightly comical figure will serve as a reminder that while we are all ungainly at times, each of us has particular strengths and special beauty. Hold the duck in the water with you after bathing, close your eyes, and visualize the type of duck that resonates with you. Its power may surprise you.
Associations
Element(s): Air, earth, water
Goddess: Sequana
Ogham: Luis
Bird Identification
American Pekin Duck (Anas platyrhynchos domestica)
Size: 25 to 35 inches
Wingspan: 54 to 60 inches
Comparative size: Goose
Description: Broad, round head; broad, orange bill; body elevated in front sloping downward in back; long, thick neck; stout legs; legs and feet yellow/orange; tapered wings; fan-shaped tail; cream or creamy-white color all over
Male: Develops a curled tail feather
Range: Ducks are domesticated around the world
Habitat: From small organic farms to massive poultry-production facilities
Eggs: White
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
Size: 20 to 26 inches
Wingspan: 32 to 37 inches
Comparative size: Red-tailed hawk
Description: Large with hefty bodies; rounded heads; wide, flat bill; white-bordered, blue patch on wing
Male: Dark, iridescent-green head; white neck ring; bright yellow bill; gray body with brown breast and black rear
Female: Mottled brown all over; white tail; orange-brown bill
Range: From Alaska across Canada to Newfoundland and south throughout the United States and Mexico
Habitat: Lakes, ponds, marshes, rivers, and coastal habitats, as well as city and suburban parks and residential backyards
Eggs: Creamy to grayish or greenish buff
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)
Size: 18 to 21 inches
Wingspan: 26 to 28 inches
Comparative size: Crow
Description: Boxy, crested head; thin neck; broad tail; short, broad wings
Male: Glossy green head with crest; white throat, partial neck ring and chin strap; pink bill; red eyes; chestnut breast; buff-colored sides
Female: Brownish-gray; darker crown; broad white eye ring tapering back to a point; gray-brown body; white-speckled breast
Range: Throughout the eastern United States to the Great Plains; parts of the Southwest and Mexico, the northwestern United States and California
Habitat: Wooded swamps, marshes, streams, and ponds
Eggs: Glossy creamy white to tan
Collective noun(s): A brace, a daggle, a flush, a paddling, or a raft of ducks. There is also a fleet or a sword of mallards and a discomfiture of wood ducks.
62. Jonathan Alderfer, ed. National Geographic Complete Birds of North America (Washington, DC: National Geographic Society, 2006), 147.
63. Ibid., 19.
64. Susanna Hoffman and Victoria Wise, Bold: A Cookbook of Big Flavors (New York: Workman Publishing, 2013), 174.