Ever opened up your incubator and been both amazed and puzzled by the sight of a white duckling amongst your Magpie bunch? You're not alone! When embarking on the journey of duck breeding, many enthusiasts and hobbyists are often delighted and somewhat surprised to find white ducklings amidst the regular-colored Magpie ducklings in their incubator. But are these ducklings as "rare" as they seem? Let's look at why this happens!
Genetics as a whole can be somewhat confusing. To get the most out of this post, you will need a basic understanding of recessive vs. dominant genes and be able to read a simple Punnett square.
As you probably learned in school at one point, the coloring and patterns of animals are due to particular genetic combinations. Fortunately, we know the location (loci) of a few of the genes that determine the coloration of ducks, and specifically for the purpose of this post, if they are white or not. Think of these loci as genetic markers, and something called "alleles" as the variables within them.
Every duck has a set of alleles on each locus, and each allele is described as a unique identifier (usually a letter or letters). Dominant alleles are described with capital letters while their recessive counterparts are lowercase.
In ducks, the alleles that control the white phenotype (how something looks from the outside) are C+ and c. The recessive c gene wields the fascinating power of inhibiting the expression of all other feather pigments, making the duck completely white, no matter what other color or pattern genes are present. The duck must be homozygous for recessive white (c/c) to be white. Interestingly, the white color is not just a mere absence of color but an active inhibition of pigment.
The dominant allele, represents the "not-white" allele. Ducks with even a single copy of this allele won't exhibit color suppression. Ducks that are heterozygous (C+/c) are carriers of the white gene, but their plumage will showcase whatever colors or patterns that their other genes express. Ducks that are homozygous dominant (C+/C+) will look identical to their heterozygous counterparts, but they will not carry the recessive white gene.
Note the example punnet squares above.
- LEFT: In the breeding of a homozygous dominant and a heterozygous parent, there is a 100% chance of patterned offspring, and a 50% chance that the offspring are heterozygous.
- RIGHT: In the breeding of two heterozygous parents (both having a patterned phenotype), there is a 50% chance of heterozygous (patterned) offspring, a 25% chance of a homozygous dominant offspring, and a 25% of a homozygous recessive (white) offspring.
I like to use the term "White Sports" as that is the term used by Dave Holderread. Many breeders and hatcheries market them as "white hybrids," "white layers," or just "white ducks." Stanbridge White ducks, thought to have been extinct until recently, were supposedly developed from a "white magpie sport" although the sources to back up that statement are sparse.
Many breeders and duck enthusiasts, upon discovering a white duckling hatching from their Magpie eggs, assume they've stumbled upon something incredibly rare. Now, I get it. We see something different, and our first thought is: "Have I got a rare gem here?" In truth, White Magpie Sports are not as rare as they're made out to be. If you're buying Magpie duck eggs or ducklings from any breeder, there's almost always a chance of getting white hatchlings in the mix.
While they might not be in the official APA Standard of Perfection, these white ducks are an inevitable part of the Magpie breed. As with all ducks, their value isn't merely in their color but in the joy and purpose they bring to your homestead or farm. Keep your white magpies as egg layers, pets, or raise them for meat (they will be significantly easier to pluck). If you're not a fan of the white look, find them a new home (please do not dump them in ponds!). They can also be used for breeding back to your patterned birds.
