Duck ID Question

Very slow day in the marsh yesterday – lots of super high fliers (migrators?), but very few to our spread. We ended up with 4: 2 drake mallards, 1 hen mallard, and 1 ??? The one in question has the yellow-green bill of a drake, not the mottled orange of a hen. It has the head markings and the feathers of a black duck. However, it has the speculum of a mallard (white bars on leading and trailing edge). So what is it? I am guessing that it is cross between a mallard and a black duck, but a drake, not a hen. What do you think? Would it be considered a mallard or a black in the daily bag limit?

I would think maybe and mallard/black duck cross, the demise of the black duck right there!I seen a show where they talked about these, a drake mallard breeds a black duck hen and a brood of sterile ducks are born. I’m no expert but that sure doesnt look like a full mallard hen.

IMO, no way is that a hen mallard with that bill. I would guess it is a hybrid, tough to know for sure from the pics, but I would say definitely not a black, and not a hen mallard.

Not sure which that counts against in the daily bag. Probably could argue either way.

Mexican duck??

looks like a black/ mallard cross to me. either that or a transgender mallard

I looked at several other websites for duck ID, and I’m going with the Black Duck tag….I was thinking a hen ‘smiling mallard’, but I staying with the black duck…..

Either way, darn nice hunting there

theres now way that is is a pure black tho. they do not have any white, and have a purple speculum. i should know, i killed my first one this weekend