Call Duck: The Smallest Domestic Duck
The short version
Egg-color genetics
Like most light-duck breeds, Call Ducks lay a white to tinted (pale greenish-cream) egg; the exact tint varies bird to bird within a variety and has nothing to do with the duck's feather color. There is no blue-egg gene at work here — duck-egg color is a thin surface tint over a pale shell, not a through-shell pigment like a chicken's blue egg.
Why Call Ducks are the smallest — and loudest — duck
Call Ducks were developed in the Netherlands and England as living decoys: hunters used their small size and remarkably loud, persistent quack to *call* wild Mallard down into the great funnel traps and decoy pipes of the Fenlands and Dutch marshes. That loud voice was the working feature, and it is still very much present — a Call hen is one of the noisiest birds you can keep, which is worth knowing before adding them to a suburban backyard.
As decoying gave way to the show bench, breeders shrank the bird and rounded the head, turning a working decoy into the definitive exhibition bantam duck. First standardised in the UK in the 1860s, the Call is today one of the most popular ornamental waterfowl breeds in the show world.
What color eggs do Call Ducks lay?
Call Ducks lay a small white to tinted egg — the pale, faintly greenish-cream typical of light duck breeds. Egg color does not track feather variety, and individual hens vary from near-white to a slightly greener tint. They are not prolific layers, so a Call egg is as much a breeding resource as a kitchen one.
Breeding notes
- Show Calls are bred hard for extreme type — the smallest possible body, a very short bill, and a round, wide head — so exhibition strains sit at the far end of what the bird can physically manage. Selecting for these traits is the whole game, but it is also what makes the breed challenging to reproduce well.
- The same features that win rosettes cut into hatchability and fertility: very small size and the short, wide 'brachycephalic' skull are correlated with lower fertility and weaker hatch rates, and small ducklings can struggle to pip and zip. Some breeders (e.g. Metzer Farms) deliberately keep a slightly more natural head and bill to protect fertility, longevity and hatchability.
- Calls are poor layers by production standards — a hen may give only a small clutch in a season — so plan breeding around a limited number of eggs and set everything you can. A single wrong drake can undo generations of careful selection, so guard pen matings closely.
- On the plus side, Call hens are reliably broody and make attentive natural mothers, which is one practical route to hatching a difficult egg — a good broody often out-hatches an incubator on this breed.
- They are strong fliers; brooders, grow-out pens and breeding pens need netting or clipped wings or your carefully bred stock will simply leave.
Showing notes
- Call Ducks are exhibited as a bantam/ornamental waterfowl breed and are one of the most competitive classes on the show bench — Calls are often the single largest entry at a waterfowl show.
- Judges reward the breed's signature head and bill: a short, neat bill set in a rounded, wide skull, on a small, cobby, well-rounded body carried fairly level. Size counts — smaller, to type, generally beats larger.
- Condition matters as much as type at this level: clean, unstained plumage (white varieties especially), tight feather, and a calm bird that shows itself off rather than panicking in the pen. Enter by variety.
- Because the breed is judged on original standards written by the poultry/waterfowl clubs, study your club's variety descriptions directly rather than relying on any reproduced standard text.
Hatching & incubation
- Call Ducks are ducks, so plan on a ~28-day incubation, not 21 — see /hatching/duck for the full schedule.
- Duck eggs want higher humidity than chicken eggs, and many keepers mist and briefly cool the eggs daily from the second week to mimic a hen returning from the water; follow the duck-specific humidity targets on /hatching/duck rather than chicken numbers.
- Lockdown comes around day 25 (stop turning, raise humidity) for a day-28 hatch. Because show-bred Calls are tiny, some ducklings tire before they finish zipping — watch the hatch closely, but resist helping too early.
- Fertility and hatchability run lower on extreme show strains than on most duck breeds; set extra eggs and don't judge your incubator by Call numbers alone.
Recognized varieties
Frequently asked questions
- What color eggs do Call Ducks lay?
- A small white to tinted egg — the pale, faintly greenish-cream typical of light duck breeds. Color varies a little from hen to hen and is unrelated to the bird's variety. Calls are not heavy layers, so expect a modest clutch.
- Are Call Ducks good for showing?
- Yes — the Call is *the* exhibition bantam duck and usually one of the largest, most competitive classes at a waterfowl show. Judges look for a very short bill, a round wide head, and a small, cobby body, shown in clean, tight condition. Enter by variety.
- How hard are Call Ducks to hatch?
- Harder than most ducks. They still follow the standard ~28-day duck incubation with lockdown around day 25 and higher humidity than chicken eggs, but extreme show breeding for tiny size and a short bill lowers fertility and hatchability, and small ducklings can struggle to zip. Set extra eggs and see /hatching/duck for the schedule.
- Are Call Ducks the smallest duck breed?
- Yes — the Call is the smallest breed of domestic duck, with drakes around 500–900 g and hens a little lighter. That extreme small size is exactly what breeders select for on the show bench.
- Are Call Ducks loud?
- Very. They were bred as live decoys specifically for a loud, carrying quack, and Call hens remain among the noisiest poultry you can keep — a real consideration for close neighbors.
- Can Call Ducks fly?
- Yes, Call Ducks fly well, unlike most heavier domestic ducks. Breeding and grow-out pens need netting, or wings need clipping, to keep your stock at home.
Sources
- Call Ducks (breed overview, origin, varieties & showing) — British Waterfowl Association (Breed club)
- Call Ducks (varieties, size & breeding for natural head/bill type) — Metzer Farms (Hatchery)
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