- Where to see one
- 5 U.S. zoos in our directory hold muscovy duck, confirmed against each zoo's own animal list.
Conservation status
Not Evaluated
This species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List, so it sits outside the threat scale entirely.
About the muscovy duck
The Muscovy duck is a large duck native to the Americas, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. Males are 76 to 84 cm long and weigh up to 3 to 4 kg, roughly twice the weight of females. The plumage is mostly black with large white wing patches, and the male has a dark or red knob at the bill base. This non-migratory duck lives in forested swamps, lakes, streams and nearby grassland and farm crops, and often roosts in trees at night. It eats aquatic and terrestrial plants plus small fish, amphibians, crustaceans, spiders and insects. Domesticated and feral birds are found in several other regions.
Muscovy Duck facts
- Native Americans have bred domestic Muscovy ducks since pre-Columbian times.
- It thrives in weather as cold as -12 °C and can survive even colder conditions.
- It is an aggressive duck; males often fight over food, territory or mates.
- Linnaeus named it Anas moschata, literally "musk duck".
Where to see muscovy duck in the U.S.
5 zoos across 5 states
Find the closest one
Rank the 4 zoos holding muscovy duck by how far they are from you. Your location is used in your browser to sort this list and is never sent to us.
1 more zoo holds muscovy duck but has no coordinates on file yet, so it isn't ranked here. It's in the full list below.
Colorado· 1
Delaware· 1
Illinois· 1
New York· 1
Ohio· 1
AZAThe Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Accredited members have passed an independent inspection of animal care and welfare, safety, conservation and education, repeated every five years. Many smaller facilities never apply, so “not accredited” isn't a verdict on its own. What accreditation means · How we check this
Built from each zoo's own published animal list.
