Aylesbury duck

 
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Prize-winning Aylesbury duck (front) and drake (rear), 1873

The Aylesbury duck is a breed of domesticated duck, bred mainly for its meat and
appearance. It is a large duck with pure white plumage, a pink bill, orange legs and feet,
an unusually large keel, and a horizontal stance with its body parallel to the ground. The
precise origins of the breed are unclear, but raising white ducks became popular
in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, in the 18th century owing to the demand for
white feathers as a filler for quilts. Over the 19th century selective breeding for size,
shape and colour led to the Aylesbury duck.
Duck rearing became a major industry in Aylesbury in the 19th century. The ducks were
bred on farms in the surrounding countryside. Fertilised eggs were brought into the
town's "Duck End", where local residents would rear the ducklings in their homes. The
opening of a railway to Aylesbury in 1839 enabled cheap and quick transport to the
markets of London, and duck rearing became highly profitable. By the 1860s the duck
rearing industry began to move out of Aylesbury into the surrounding towns and
villages, and the industry in Aylesbury itself began to decline.
In 1873 the Pekin duck was introduced to the United Kingdom. Although its meat was
thought to have a poorer flavour than that of the Aylesbury duck, the Pekin was hardier
and cheaper to raise. Many breeders switched to the Pekin duck or to Aylesbury-Pekin
crosses. By the beginning of the 20th century competition from the Pekin duck,
inbreeding, and disease in the pure-bred Aylesbury strain and the rising cost of duck
food meant the Aylesbury duck industry was in decline.
The First World War badly damaged the remaining duck industry in Buckinghamshire,
wiping out the small scale producers and leaving only a few large farms. Disruption
caused by the Second World War further damaged the industry. By the 1950s only one
significant flock of Aylesbury ducks remained in Buckinghamshire, and by 1966 there
were no duck-breeding or -rearing businesses of any size remaining in Aylesbury itself.
Although there is only one surviving flock of pure Aylesbury ducks in the United
Kingdom and the breed is critically endangered in the United States, the Aylesbury duck
remains a symbol of the town of Aylesbury, and appears on the coat of arms of
Aylesbury and on the club badge of Aylesbury United.
Origins and description
The precise origin of the Aylesbury duck is unclear.[1] Before the 18th century, duck
breeds were rarely recorded in England, and the common duck, bred for farming, was a
domesticated form of the wild mallard. The common duck varied in colour, and as in the
wild, white ducks would occasionally occur.[1] White ducks were particularly prized, as
their feathers were popular as a filler for quilts.[2]
In the 18th century selective breeding of white common ducks led to a white domestic
duck, generally known as the English White.[1] Since at least the 1690s ducks had been
farmed in Aylesbury,[3] and raising English Whites became popular in Aylesbury and
the surrounding villages.[4] By 1813 it was remarked that "ducks form a material article
at market from Aylesbury and places adjacent: they are white, and as it seems of an
early breed: they are bred and brought up by poor people, and sent to London by the
weekly carriers".[5] The duck farmers of Aylesbury went to great lengths to ensure the
ducks retained their white colouring, keeping them clear of dirty water, soil with a high
iron content and bright sunlight, all of which could discolour the ducks' feathers.[6]Over
time, selective breeding of the English White for size and colour gradually led to the
development of the Aylesbury duck.[6]
A rather large duck breed,[7] the Aylesbury duck has pure white plumage and bright
orange legs and feet.[1] Its legs are placed midway along the body and it stands with its
underside parallel to the ground, giving it a body described as "boat-shaped".[1][8] It
has a relatively long and thin swan-like neck, and a long pink bill which comes straight
out from the head.[1][note 1]
An Aylesbury duckling incubates in the egg for 28 days.[9] Until eight weeks after
hatching, the time of their first moult, ducks and drakes (females and males) are almost
indistinguishable. After moulting, males have two or three curved tail feathers and a
fainter, huskier quack than the female. By one year of age, females and males grow to
an average weight of 6 and 7 pounds (2.7 and 3.2 kg) respectively, although males can
reach around 10 pounds (4.5 kg).[1][7]
Unlike the Rouen duck, the other popular meat variety in England in the 19th century,
Aylesbury ducks lay eggs from early November.[6] Aylesbury ducks fatten quickly and
by eight weeks after hatching weigh up to 5 pounds (2.3 kg), large enough to eat but still
young and extremely tender.[10] Consequently, their meat came onto the market from
February onwards, after the close of the game season but before the earliest spring
chickens were on sale.[6] Rouen ducks, whose mallard-like coloration made them less
valuable, lay eggs from early February and take six months to grow large enough to eat.
[6] As a consequence, Aylesbury ducks were sold primarily in the spring and summer,
and Rouen ducks in the autumn and winter.[6][note 2]
Aylesbury duck farming
The white Aylesbury duck is, and deservedly, a universal favourite. Its
snowy plumage and comfortable comportment make it a credit to the poultry-
yard, while its broad and deep breast, and its ample back, convey the
assurance that your satisfaction will not cease at its death. In parts of
Buckinghamshire, this member of the duck family is bred on an extensive
scale; not on plains and commons, however, as might be naturally imagined,
but in the abodes of the cottagers. Round the walls of the living-rooms,
and of the bedroom even, are fixed rows of wooden boxes, lined with hay;
and it is the business of the wife and children to nurse and comfort the
feathered lodgers, to feed the little ducklings, and to take the old ones
out for an airing. Sometimes the "stock" ducks are the cottager's own
property, but it more frequently happens that they are intrusted to his
care by a wholesale breeder, who pays him so much per score for all
ducklings properly raised. To be perfect, the Aylesbury duck should be
plump, pure white, with yellow feet, and a flesh coloured beak.[11]
— Isabella Beeton, Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, 1861
Unlike most livestock farming in England at this time, the duck breeders and duck
rearers of Aylesbury formed two separate groups.[12] Stock ducks—i.e., ducks kept for
breeding—were kept on farms in the countryside of the Aylesbury Vale, away from the
polluted air and water of the town. This kept the ducks healthy, and meant a higher
number of fertile eggs.[10]
Stock ducks would be chosen from ducklings hatched in March, with a typical breeder
keeping six males and twenty laying females at any given time.[13] The females would
be kept for around a year before mating, typically to an older male. They would then
generally be replaced, to reduce the problems of inbreeding.[14] Stock ducks were
allowed to roam freely during the day, and would swim in local ponds which, although
privately owned, were treated as common property among the duck breeders;
[13] breeders would label their ducks with markings on the neck or head.[14] The stock
ducks would forage for greenery and insects, supplemented by greaves (the residue left
after the rendering of animal fat).[14] As ducks lay their eggs at night, the ducks would
be brought indoors overnight.[14]
 Stock Aylesbury ducks at Weston Turville, circa 1900

Female Aylesbury ducks would not sit still for the 28 days necessary for their eggs to
hatch, and as a consequence the breeders would not allow mothers to sit on their own
eggs. Instead the fertilised eggs would be collected and transferred to the "duckers" of
Aylesbury's Duck End.[15][note 3]
Rearing
The duckers of Aylesbury would buy eggs from the breeders,[10] or be paid by a
breeder to raise the ducks on their behalf,[11] and would raise the ducklings in their
homes between November and August as a secondary source of income. Duckers were
typically skilled labourers, who invested surplus income in ducklings. Many of the tasks
related to rearing the ducks would be carried out by the women of the household,
[10] particularly the care of newly hatched ducklings.[9]
The eggs would be divided into batches of 13, and placed under broodychickens.[9]
[note 4] In the last week of the four-week incubation period the eggs would be sprinkled
daily with warm water to soften the shells and allow the ducklings to hatch.[9]
Newly hatched Aylesbury ducklings are timid and thrive best in small groups, so the
duckers would divide them into groups of three or four ducklings, each accompanied by
a hen. As the ducklings grew older and gained confidence, they would be kept in groups
of around 30.[9]Originally the ducks would be kept in every room in the ducker's
cottage, but towards the end of the 19th century they were kept in outdoor pens and
sheds with suitable protection against cold weather.[9]
The aim of the ducker was to get every duckling as fat as possible by the age of eight
weeks (the first moult, the age at which they would be killed for meat), while avoiding
any foods which would build up their bones or make their flesh greasy.[17] In their first
week after hatching, the ducklings would be fed on boiled eggs, toast soaked in water,
boiled rice and beef liver. From the second week on, this diet would gradually be
replaced by barley meal and boiled rice mixed with greaves. (Some larger-scale
duckers would boil a horse or sheep and feed this to the ducklings in place of greaves.)
[17] This high-protein diet was supplemented with nettles, cabbage and lettuce to
provide a source of vitamins.[17][note 5] As with all poultry, ducks require grit in their
diet to break up the food and make it digestible. Aylesbury ducklings' drinking water was
laced with grit from Long Marston and Gubblecote;[17] this grit also gave their bills their
distinctive pinkish colour.[7] Around 85% of ducklings would survive this eight-week
rearing process to be sent to market.[9]
It was a very pretty sight to see a flock of young ducklings driven along the village
streets to have their one and only swim on a pond; which, taken at the right time, helped
them to feather properly. Often the flock spread over the road from side to side and all
traffic had perforce to stop, while, quacking much and ambulating slowly, they passed
and the road would then be free.[18]
Walter Rose describing ducks in Haddenham, circa 1925
While ducks are naturally aquatic, swimming can be dangerous to young ducklings, and
it can also restrict a duck's growth. Thus, although duckers would ensure the ducklings
always had a trough or sink to paddle in, the ducklings would be kept away from bodies
of water while they were growing. The exception was shortly before slaughter, when the
ducklings would be taken for one swim in a pond, as it helped them to feather properly.
[18]
Although there were a few large-scale duck rearing operations in Aylesbury, raising
thousands of ducklings each season, the majority of Aylesbury's duckers would raise
between 400 and 1,000 ducklings each year.[10] Because ducking was a secondary
occupation, it was not listed in Aylesbury's census returns or directories and it is
impossible to know how many people were engaged in it at any given time.[10] Kelly's
Directory for 1864 does not list a single duck farmer in Aylesbury,[10] but an 1885 book
comments that:
In the early years of the present [19th] century almost every householder
at the "Duck End" of the town followed the avocation of ducker. In a
living room it was no uncommon sight to meet with young ducks of different
ages, divided in pens and monopolizing the greatest space of the
apartment, whilst expected new arrivals often were carefully lodged in the
bedchamber.[19]

One poor man whom I visited, had before his door a small pit of water, about three
yards long and one yard broad: at two corners of this pit are places of shelter for the
ducks, thatched with straw: at night the ducks are taken into a house. In one room
belonging to this man (the only room he had to live in), were ducks of three growths, on
the 14th of January, 1808, fattening for London market: at one corner about seventeen
or eighteen four weeks old; at another corner a brood a fortnight old; and at a third
corner a brood a week old. In the bed-room were hens brooding ducks' eggs in boxes,
to be bought off at different periods.[5]
The Rev. Richard Parkinson St. John Priest, Secretary to the Norfolk Agricultural
Society, reporting on Aylesbury to the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement,
1813
The Duck End was one of the poorer districts of Aylesbury. Until the end of the
19th century it had no sewers or refuse collections.[16] The area had a number of open
ditches filled with stagnant water, and outbreaks of malaria and cholera were common.
[4] The cottages had inadequate ventilation and lighting,[16] and no running water.
[14] Faeces from the duck ponds permeated the local soil and seeped into the cottages
through cracks in the floors.[16]
Slaughter and sale
When the ducklings were ready for slaughter, the duckers would generally kill them on
their own premises. The slaughter would generally take place in the morning, to ensure
the ducks would be ready for market in the evening. To keep the meat as white as
possible, the ducks would be suspended upside down and their necks broken
backwards, and held in this position until their blood had run towards their heads. They
were kept in this position for ten minutes before being plucked, as otherwise their blood
would collect in those parts of the body from which the feathers had been plucked.
[18] The plucking was generally carried out by the women of the household.[18] The
plucked carcasses would be sent to market, and the feathers would be sold direct to
London dealers.[20]
The market for duck meat in Aylesbury itself was small, and the ducks were generally
sent to London for sale. By the 1750s Richard Pocockerecorded that four cartloads of
ducks were sent from Aylesbury to London every Saturday,[21] and in the late 18th and
early 19th centuries the ducks continued to be sent over the Chiltern Hills to London by
packhorse or cart.[20]
On 15 June 1839 the entrepreneur and former Member of
Parliament for Buckingham, Sir Harry Verney, 2nd Baronet, opened the Aylesbury
Railway.[22] Built under the direction of Robert Stephenson,[23] it connected
the London and Birmingham Railway's Cheddington railway station on the West Coast
Main Line to Aylesbury High Street railway station in eastern Aylesbury.[24] On
1 October 1863 the Wycombe Railwayalso built a line to Aylesbury, from Princes
Risborough railway station to a station on the western side of Aylesbury (the present-
day Aylesbury railway station).[24] The arrival of the railway had a powerful impact on
the duck industry, and up to a ton of ducks in a night were being shipped from
Aylesbury to Smithfield Market in London by 1850.[20]
A routine became established in which salesmen would provide the duckers with labels.
The duckers would mark their ducklings with the labels of the firm to whom they wished
them to be sold in London. The railway companies would collect ducklings, take them to
the stations, ship them to London and deliver them to the designated firms, in return for
a flat fee per bird. By avoiding the need for the duckers to travel to market, or the
London salesmen to collect the ducklings, this arrangement benefited all concerned,
and ducking became very profitable.[20] By 1870 the duck industry was bringing over
£20,000 per year into Aylesbury; a typical ducker would make a profit of around £80–
£200 per year.[25][note 6]
Developments in the late 19th century
In 1845, the first National Poultry Show was held, at the Zoological Gardens in London;
one of the classes of poultry exhibited was "Aylesbury or other white variety". The
personal interest of Queen Victoria in poultry farming, and its inclusion in the Great
Exhibition of 1851, further raised public interest in poultry. From 1853 the Royal
Agricultural Society and the Bath and West of England Society, the two most prominent
agricultural societies in England, included poultry sections in their annual agricultural
shows. This in turn caused smaller local poultry shows to develop across the country.
[28]
Breeders would choose potential exhibition ducks from among newly hatched ducklings
in March and April, and they would be given a great deal of extra attention. They would
be fed a carefully controlled diet to get them to the maximum weight, and would be
allowed out for a few hours each day to keep them in as good a physical condition as
possible. Before the show, their legs and feet would be washed, their bills trimmed with
a knife and sandpapered smooth, and their feathers brushed with linseed oil.[28] While
most breeders would give the ducks a healthy meal before the show to calm them,
some breeders would force-feed the ducks with sausage or worms, to get them to as
heavy a weight as possible.[29]Exhibition standards judged an Aylesbury duck primarily
on size, shape and colour. This encouraged the breeding of larger ducks, with
pronounced exaggerated keels, and loose baggy skin.[29] By the beginning of the
20th century the Aylesbury duck had diverged into two separate strains, one bred for
appearance and one for meat.[29]
Pekin ducks

Pekin ducks are similar to the Aylesbury, but with orange bills and a more upright posture.

In 1873 the Pekin duck was introduced from China to Britain for the first time.
Superficially similar in appearance to an Aylesbury duck, a Pekin is white with orange
legs and bill, with its legs near the rear, giving it an upright stance while on land.
[8] Although not thought to have such a delicate flavour as the Aylesbury,[30] the Pekin
was hardier, a more prolific layer,[8]fattened more quickly,[31] and was roughly the
same size as an Aylesbury at nine weeks.[8]
Aylesbury ducks, meanwhile, were becoming inbred, meaning fertile eggs were scarcer
and the ducks were more susceptible to disease.[30][32]Exhibition standards had led to
selection for an exaggerated keel by breeders, despite it being unpopular with dealers
and consumers.[8]Poultry show judges also admired the long neck and upright posture
of Pekin ducks over the boat-like stance of the Aylesbury.[8] Some of the breeders in
the Aylesbury area began to cross Pekin ducks with the pure Aylesbury strain. Although
the Aylesbury-Pekin cross ducks did not have the delicate flavour of the pure Aylesbury,
they were hardier and much cheaper to raise.[8]
Until the mid-19th century duck rearing was concentrated on the Duck End, but by the
1860s it had spread to many other towns and villages in the area, particularly Weston
Turville and Haddenham.[33] Contamination of Aylesbury's soil by years of duck
rearing, and new public health legislation which ended many traditional practices,
caused the decline of the duck rearing industry in the Duck End, and by the 1890s the
majority of Aylesbury ducks were raised in the villages rather than the town itself.
[33] Population shifts and the improved national rail network reduced the need to rear
ducks near London, and large duck farms opened
in Lancashire, Norfolk and Lincolnshire.[33] Although the number of ducks raised
nationwide continued to grow, between 1890 and 1900 the number of ducks raised in
the Aylesbury area remained static, and from 1900 it began to drop.[33]
Decline

Jemima Puddle-Duck

By the time Beatrix Potter's 1908 The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck—about an

Aylesbury duck although set in Cumbria—caused renewed interest in the breed, the
Aylesbury duck was in steep decline.[7] The duckers of Buckinghamshire had generally
failed to introduce technological improvements such as the incubator, and inbreeding
had dangerously weakened the breed.[30][32] Meanwhile, the cost of duck food had
risen fourfold over the 19th century, and from 1873 onwards competition from Pekin and
Pekin cross ducks was undercutting Aylesbury ducks at the marketplace.[8]
The First World War devastated the remaining duckers of Buckinghamshire. The price
of duck food rose steeply while the demand for luxury foodstuffs fell,[30] and wartime
restructuring ended the beneficial financial arrangements with the railway companies.
[34] By the end of the war small-scale duck rearing in the Aylesbury Vale had vanished,
with duck raising dominated by a few large duck farms.[35]Shortages of duck food in
the Second World War caused further disruption to the industry, and almost all duck
farming in the Aylesbury Vale ended.[35] A 1950 "Aylesbury Duckling Day" campaign to
boost the reputation of the Aylesbury duck had little effect;[36] by the end of the 1950s
the last significant farms had closed, other than a single flock in Chesham owned by
Mr L. T. Waller,[35] and by 1966 there were no duck breeders or rearers of any size
remaining in Aylesbury.[37] As of 2015 the Waller family's farm in Chesham remains in
business, the last surviving flock of pure Aylesbury meat ducks in the country.[35][38]
[39]
Aylesbury ducks were imported into the United States in 1840, although they never
became a popular breed. They were, however, added to the American Poultry
Association's Standard of Perfection breeding guidelines in 1876.[40] As of 2013, the
breed was listed as critically endangered in the United States by The Livestock
Conservancy.[41]
Legacy
The Aylesbury duck remains a symbol of the town of Aylesbury. Aylesbury United
F.C. are nicknamed "The Ducks" and include an Aylesbury duck on their club badge,
[42] and the town's coat of arms includes an Aylesbury duck and plaited straw,
representing the two historic industries of the town.[43] The Aylesbury Brewery
Company, now defunct, featured the Aylesbury duck as its logo, an example of which
can still be seen at the Britannia pub.[44] Duck Farm Court is a shopping area of
modern Aylesbury located near the historic hamlet of California, close to one of the
main breeding grounds for ducks in the town,[45] and there have been two pubs in the
town with the name "The Duck" in recent years; one in Bedgrove that has since been
demolished[46] and one in Jackson Road that has recently been renamed.[47]
See also

 List of duck breeds

Notes and references

Notes

1. One source describes the bill colour as "like a lady's fingernail".[1]

2. The division between Aylesbury ducks in the first half of the year and Rouen
ducks in the second was not absolute; Aylesbury ducks were also reared for the
Christmas market.[6]
3. The "Duck End" was the area bounded by the present-day Castle Street,
Whitehall Street and Friarage Road.[16]
4. At the start of the laying season an average of eight eggs out of every 13 would
hatch, with the proportion hatching successfully increasing over the laying season.
The unhatched eggs would be fed to the newly hatched ducklings.[9]
5. Aylesbury ducklings are sensitive to Vitamin E deficiency, which causes them to
lose their sense of balance, fall over and die.[7]
6. In terms of consumer spending power, the £20,000 profit for the Aylesbury
duckers is equivalent to around about £1.9 million per year in 2019 terms, while the
£80–£200 profit for a typical ducker equates to between £7,500 and £19,000 in 2019
terms.[26] The economy of rural Buckinghamshire in the 19th century included
significant elements of tenant farming and payment in kind; the average weekly
wage of a rural labourer was only 14s 8d (£69 in terms of 2019 purchasing power).
[26][27] Modern price equivalents should only be taken as very rough comparisons.

References

1. Ambrose 1982, p. 6.

2. Ambrose 1982, pp. 6–8.
3. Hanley 1993, p. 48.
4. De Rijke 2008, p. 79.
5. St. John Priest 1813, p. 331.
6. Ambrose 1982, p. 8.
7. De Rijke 2008, p. 80.
8. Ambrose 1982, p. 32.
9. Ambrose 1982, p. 16.
10. Ambrose 1982, p. 10.
11. Beeton 1861, p. 452.
12. "The Duck-Fattening Industry". News. The Times (34233). London. 1894-04-09.
col B, p. 12. (Subscription required (help)). (subscription required)
13. Gibbs 1885, p. 623.
14. Ambrose 1982, p. 14.
15. Ambrose 1982, pp. 14–16.
16. Ambrose 1982, p. 13.
17. Ambrose 1982, p. 18.
18. Ambrose 1982, p. 19.
19. Gibbs 1885, p. 622.
20. Ambrose 1982, p. 23.
21. Pococke 1888, p. 164.
22. Jones 1974, p. 3.
23. Lee 1935, p. 235.
24. Melton 1984, p. 5.
25. Ambrose 1982, p. 24.
26. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory
(2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New
Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
27. Ambrose 1982, pp. 24–26.
28. Ambrose 1982, p. 26.
29. Ambrose 1982, p. 28.
30. Ambrose 1982, p. 33.
31. "Duck-Breeding Enterprise". Crops And Live Stock. The Times (39213). London.
1910-03-07. col E, p. 4. (Subscription required (help)).(subscription required)
32. De Rijke 2008, p. 81.
33. Ambrose 1982, p. 30.
34. Ambrose 1982, pp. 33–34.
35. Ambrose 1982, p. 34.
36. "Duckling Day at Aylesbury". News. The Times (51730). London. 1950-06-29. col
B, p. 3. (Subscription required (help)). (subscription required)
37. "What's in a name on British dishes". News. The Times (56824). London. 1966-
12-28. col E, p. 9. (Subscription required (help)). (subscription required)
38. Prince, Rose (2010-03-16). "Aylesbury ducks really deliver". Daily Telegraph.
London.
39. "Richard Waller Breeder of Authentic Aylesbury Ducks: About Us". Richard
Waller. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
40. Dohner 2001, p. 461.
41. "Conservation Priority List", livestockconservancy.org, The Livestock
Conservancy, retrieved 2013-09-03
42. "The History of Aylesbury United". Aylesbury: Aylesbury United F.
C. Archived from the original on 25 October 2010. Retrieved 26 October2010.
43. Tomlinson, H. L. (1946). "Aylesbury Town Council Coat of Arms". Aylesbury:
Aylesbury Town Council. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 26
October 2010.
44. "Buckinghamshire: Defunct Brewery Livery". The Brewery History Society.
Retrieved 28 October 2010.
45. "Welcome to Duck Farm Court". Aylesbury: Duck Farm Court. 2007.
Retrieved 28 October 2010.
46. "The Duck Latest". Aylesbury: Bedgrove Liberal Democrats. Retrieved 28
October 2010.
47. "Licensing of Public Entertainment at the Aylesbury Duck Public House, Jackson
Road, Aylesbury". Aylesbury: Aylesbury Vale District Council. Archived from the
original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2010.

Bibliography

 Ambrose, Alison (1982). The Aylesbury Duck (1991 ed.). Aylesbury:

Buckinghamshire County Museum. ISBN 0-86059-532-3.
 Beeton, Isabella (1861). Beeton's Book of Household Management. London: S.
O. Beeton Publishing.
 De Rijke, Victoria (2008). Duck. London: Reaktion Books. ISBN 1-86189-350-7.
 Dohner, Janet Vorwald (2001). Dohner, Janet Vorwald (ed.). The Encyclopedia
of Historic and Endangered Livestock and Poultry Breeds. Topeka, Kansas: Yale
University Press. p. 461. ISBN 978-0-300-08880-9.
 Gibbs, Robert (1885). Buckinghamshire: A History of Aylesbury with its Borough
and Hundreds, the Hamlet of Walton, and the Electoral Division. Aylesbury: Robert
Gibbs.
 Hanley, Hugh (1993). Aylesbury: A pictorial history. Chichester:
Phillimore. ISBN 0-85033-873-5.
 Jones, Ken (1974). The Wotton Tramway (Brill Branch). Locomotion Papers.
Blandford: The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-149-1.
 Lee, Charles E. (1935). "The Duke of Buckingham's Railways: with special
reference to the Brill line". Railway Magazine. 77 (460): 235–241.
 Melton, Ian (1984). R. J., Greenaway (ed.). "From Quainton to Brill: A history of
the Wotton Tramway". Underground. Hemel Hempstead: The London Underground
Railway Society (13). ISSN 0306-8609.
 Pococke, Richard (1888). The Travels Through England of Dr. Richard Pococke,
Successively Bishop of Meath and of Ossory, During 1750, 1751, and Later Years.
Works of the Camden Society. London: Camden Society.
 St. John Priest, Richard Parkinson (1813). General View of the Agriculture of
Buckinghamshire. London: Sherwood, Neely and Jones.

External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aylesbury duck.

 The Aylesbury Duck – Aylesbury Vale District Council

 Richard Waller Breeder of Authentic Aylesbury Ducks
 Domestic Waterfowl Club...Aylesbury Ducks
 Details and breed standard
 Poultry Pages Aylesbury Duck

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 American Pekin ducks

The Pekin or White Pekin is an American breed of domestic duck, raised primarily

for meat.[6][7] It derives from birds brought to the United States from China in the
nineteenth century,[8] and is now bred in many countries, and in all continents.[6] It is a
distinct and separate breed from the German Pekin, which derives from the same
Chinese stock but has different breeding, and so is often known as the American
Pekin. Many of these ducks were reared on Long Island, New York, in the late 19th and
early 20th centuries, from which the breed derived its name Long Island Duck.[9]:156
History
The mallard was domesticated in China some 3,000 years ago, and possibly much
earlier.[10]:121[11]:3 Force-feeding of ducks is documented from the tenth century,
under the Five Dynasties.[12]:593 The Chinese were sophisticated breeders of ducks;
[2]:92 among several breeds they created was one named shi-chin-ya-tze, which
roughly translates to "ten-pound duck", from which the American Pekin derives.[8]
In 1872, James E. Palmer of Stonington, Connecticut, loaded fifteen white ducks of this
type for shipment to a businessman named McGrath in the United States. The birds
were loaded at Shanghai but had been hatched in Peking (now called Beijing). Nine of
them – six hens and three drakes – survived the voyage, which took 124 days and
reached New York City on 13 March 1873.[2]:92[13] Five of the surviving birds were
dispatched to McGrath but were eaten before they reached him. Palmer's four birds
became the foundation stock of the American Pekin; by July 1873, his three hens had
laid more than three hundred eggs.[14]
In 1874, the Pekin was included in the first edition of the Standard of
Perfection published by the new American Poultry Association.[2]:92 It was soon in
widespread production for slaughter.[2]:92 Until that time, a popular breed raised for
meat had been the Cayuga, which had the disadvantage of dark feathering, so that any
fluff remaining on the carcass was easily seen; the white-feathered Pekin was
preferable.[14]
Other birds of the same type were imported to the United Kingdom in 1872 and from
there soon reached Germany, where they gave rise to the German Pekin, a distinct and
separate breed.[4][8] In Germany, the Chinese ducks were cross-bred with upright white
ducks brought from Japan by Dutch ships, resulting in birds with a steep body angle;
those taken to the United States were crossed with birds of the British Aylesbury breed,
which led to birds with a more horizontal stance.[8][15] The Pekin in the United Kingdom
derives from birds imported from Germany from about 1970.[14]
Characteristics

Pekin duckling

The American Pekin is large and solidly built. The body is rectangular as seen from the
side and is held at about 40º to the horizontal; the tail projects above the line of the
back.[2]:93[15] The breast is smooth and broad and does not show a pronounced keel.
The head is large and rounded, and the neck is thick. The plumage is creamy white, the
legs and feet are a yellowish orange. The beak is yellow,[16]:193 fairly short, and
almost straight.[2]:93
Use
The American Pekin is raised almost exclusively for meat.[16]:193 In the United States,
more than half of all ducks raised for slaughter are of this breed.[2]:93 Numbers in the
United States alone are in the tens of millions.[15] The birds are large-framed, hardy
and fast-growing – they may reach a body-weight of more than 3.5 kg (7.7 lb) in seven
weeks. They have a high feed conversion ratio, are calm-tempered and fertile, and their
eggs have a high rate of hatchability.[2]:93 The Pekin's white feathers make the carcass
easy to clean after being plucked.[16]:193
A number of commercial strains have been developed, including types kept solely as
layers. From the time the birds reached the United States, selective breeding of meat
birds was mainly directed towards size, strength and rate of growth. More recently,
attempts have been made to reduce the proportion of fat in the carcass, even if growth
rate and feed conversion ratio are also reduced.[2]:94
Pekin ducks may lay over 150 white eggs per year.[16]:193 They are not good sitters,
and eggs may need to be artificially incubated.[16]:193
The American Pekin is sometimes kept for fancy and showing.[15] Show birds are often
larger than commercial production stock.[2]:94
References

1. Barbara Rischkowsky, D. Pilling (eds.) (2007). List of breeds documented in the

Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources, annex to The State of the World's
Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome: Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations. ISBN 9789251057629. Accessed February
2017. Also on CD-ROM.
2. Dave Holderread (2011). Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks, second edition. North
Adams, Massachusetts: Storey Publishing. ISBN 9781603427456.
3. APA Recognized Breeds and Varieties: As of January 1, 2012 . American Poultry
Association. Archived 4 November 2017.
4. Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013) . Entente
Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.
5. Breed Classification. Poultry Club of Great Britain. Archived 12 June 2018.
6. Transboundary breed: Pekin. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of
the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed February
2017.
7. Transboundary breed: White Pekin. Domestic Animal Diversity Information
System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed
February 2017.
8. Kenneth Broekman (December 2009). The German Pekin Duck. Aviculture
Europe. 5 (6), article 12. Accessed February 2017.
9. [s.n.] (1999). Food Arts, volume 12. Food Arts Incorporated.
10. Wolf Herre, Manfred Röhrs (2013). Haustiere - zoologisch gesehen, second
edition (in German). Berlin; Heidelberg: Springer
Spektrum. ISBN 9783642393938. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-39394-5.
11. Peter Cherry, Trevor Raymond Morris (2008). Domestic Duck Production:
Science and Practice. Wallingford, Oxfordshire: CABI. ISBN 9781845934415.
12. Alan Davidson (1999). The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford: Oxford
University Press. ISBN 9780192115799.
13. [s.n.] (February 1880). Pekin Ducks The Pet Stock Pigeon and Poultry
Bulletin 10 (11): 1.
14. Chris Ashton, Mike Ashton (2001). The Domestic Duck. Ramsbury, Marlborough:
The Crowood Press. ISBN 9781847979704.
15. Paul-Erwin Oswald (2004). Amerikanische Pekingenten – Entenrasse im
Blickfeld 2004 (in German). Sonderverein der Entenzüchter Deutschlands von 1895.
Accessed April 2017.
16. Carol Ekarius (2007). Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds. North Adams,
Massachusetts: Storey Publishing. ISBN 9781580176675.

External links

  Media related to American Pekin at Wikimedia Commons

Mulard

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Mulard

Description de cette image, également commentée ci-après

Canards mulards.

Classification

Règne Animalia

Embranchement Chordata

Classe Aves

Ordre Anseriformes

Famille Anatidae

Animal hybride sans nom scientifiqueNote 1

Parent mâle de l'hybridation

Cairina moschata

Parent femelle de l'hybridation

Anas platyrhynchos

Le canard mulard est un hybride stérile issu du croisement de deux espèces de canard. En France, il est
exclusivement destiné à être gavé pour la production de foie gras. Toutefois, seuls les foies gras des
canards mulards mâles ont le droit d'être vendus sous la dénomination "foie gras" (législation
européenne).
Sa tête et sa queue sont souvent tachées de noir (pour les mâles) ou de blanc/jaune (pour les femelles).
Il s'agit du croisement d'un canard mâle, le canard de Barbarie originaire du bassin de l'Amazonie,
réputé pour sa chair, avec une cane de Pékin lourde, ou éventuellement une cane de Rouen. À la suite
d'études de l'INRA, il apparaît que les mulards issus des types génétiques lourds ont un poids plus élevé
quel que soit l'âge et donnent un foie plus lourd1. Ce croisement hybride permet d’obtenir un canard
rustique qui a la faculté de développer un excellent foie gras et une viande particulièrement savoureuse.
La production de canetons mulards est essentiellement obtenue par insémination artificielle (Inra
Toulouse).

La plupart des mulards sont élevés dans le but d'être gavés afin de produire du foie gras, du magret et
du confit, notamment dans le Sud-Ouest de la France. Ni le canard de Barbarie, ni la cane Pékin n'ont eu
d'aptitude à la migration dans leur milieu d'origine.

Sommaire

1 Consommation du canard

1.1 Historique

1.2 Transformation des canards gras

2 Images

3 Notes

4 Bibliographie

5 Voir aussi

Consommation du canard

La transformation du canard gras en produits de consommation (foie gras, magret, confit…) se pratique
essentiellement dans le Sud-Ouest de la France (Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Occitanie) et en Alsace. C’est une
pratique traditionnelle qui aujourd’hui fait l’objet de nombreuses controverses. Le savoir-faire
traditionnel est malgré tout inscrit à l’Inventaire du patrimoine culturel immatériel en France2.

Historique

En France, on compte deux régions productrices de foie gras et de plats préparés à base de canard, le
Sud-ouest et l'Alsace. La transformation du canard a la particularité d’être un exercice faisable par tous
et chez soi, c’est pour cela que très tôt, les femmes des foyers s’occupèrent à nourrir et transformer les
canards pour compléter les revenus du ménage. Le gavage s’effectuait à la saison froide (de décembre à
Mars), et la transformation de la viande au printemps, comme le tue-cochon. C’est donc à cette époque
de l’année que les familles remplissaient les celliers de viande pour l’année. Dans la plupart des cas,
pour le canard, les foies étaient vendus, car rapportant beaucoup d’argent, et la famille gardait le reste.
Seules les familles aisées pouvaient se permettre de garder le foie du canard, qu’elles ne consommaient
cependant que pour les grandes occasions : baptême, communion, fiançailles, Noël ou Nouvel An. La
transformation du canard était un évènement commun à tout le village. Les femmes se réunissaient (et
en profitaient pour juger leur travail) et procédaient au travail du canard, qui durait trois à quatre jours.
Les canards étaient d’abord tués, plumés et lavés, puis accrochés à une poutre dans un espace aéré. Les
plumes étaient conservées, lavées, séchées et vendues à un chiffonnier ou gardées pour ses propres
oreillers et édredons. Le deuxième jour, les canards étaient découpés. On sortait les foies et la viande
que l’on mettait au sel. Les troisième et quatrième jours étaient consacrés à la préparation des
conserves et pâtés.

Transformation des canards gras

La transformation des canards gras *

Logo pci fond transparent.png Inventaire du patrimoine culturel

immatériel en France

Domaine Savoir-faire

Lieu d'inventaire Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Pyrénées-Atlantiques

Morlanne

* Descriptif officiel Ministère de la Culture (France) [archive]

modifier Consultez la documentation du modèle

Ce procédé familial de transformation des canards correspond à une économie d’autosuffisance qui
perdura jusque dans les années 1980-90. Aujourd’hui et dans la plupart des cas, le processus est plus
court, car les canards sont achetés et déjà préparés au moment de l’achat (plumés et lavés). Les familles
qui élèvent encore leurs canards sont devenues rares.

Comme auparavant, le premier jour est consacré à la découpe du canard, l’extraction des foies et la mise
au sel des pièces de viande. Le canard est donc premièrement découpé en commençant par les ailes,
puis le bec, et le cou. Le tube digestif est retiré, tout comme l’ensemble du système interne. Cette étape
est traditionnellement réalisée par les femmes. Les organes ne doivent pas se percer. Le gras du canard
est récupéré pour les futures préparations culinaires. Le foie est ensuite extrait, placé dans l’eau salée,
puis séparé en deux et dénervé. Il est ensuite salé et poivré et peut être cuisiné. La cuisine du foie gras
demande beaucoup de travail d’attention et de minutie. La salaison est très importante, tant pour le
goût que pour la conservation. Le reste du canard est découpé en quatre parties : les deux cuisses et les
deux magrets. Ces pièces sont salées et déposées dans une caisse à fond de paille qui absorbera l’eau
des canards provoquée par le sel.
Le deuxième jour est le jour de la préparation des pièces de viande. Toutes sont cuites dans le gras du
canard, au préalable fondu. Une fois cuits, les cuisses et autres morceaux sont placés dans des bocaux,
recouverts de graisse et stérilisés. On peut également faire des rillettes avec les petits bouts de viandes
qui se sont décrochés lors de la cuisson. Enfin, du pâté est parfois réalisé avec du magret et d’autres
pièces de canard.

Mulard

Mulard
Description of this image, also commented below
Mulard ducks.
Classification
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
class Aves
order Anseriformes
family Anatidae

Hybrid animal without scientific nameNote 1

Male parent of hybridization
Cairina moschata
×
Female parent of hybridization
Anas platyrhynchos

The mule duck is a sterile hybrid resulting from the crossing of two duck species.
In France, it is exclusively intended to be force-fed for the production of foie gras.
However, only the foie gras of male Mulard ducks have the right to be sold under
the name "foie gras" (European legislation).

Its head and tail are often stained black (for males) or white / yellow (for
females). This is the crossing of a male duck, Barbary duck from the Amazon
basin, known for its flesh, with a heavy cane of Beijing, or possibly a duck of
Rouen. As a result of INRA studies, it appears that males from the heavy genetic
types have a higher weight at any age and give a heavier liver1. This hybrid cross
makes it possible to obtain a rustic duck that has the ability to develop an
excellent foie gras and a particularly tasty meat. The production of mulard
ducklings is mainly obtained by artificial insemination (Inra Toulouse).

Most mules are bred in order to be force-fed in order to produce foie gras, duck
breast and confit, especially in the south-west of France. Neither the Muscovy
duck nor the Peking duck have been able to migrate to their native environment.

Summary
1 Consumption of duck
1.1 Background
1.2 Transformation of fat ducks
2 Images
3 Ratings
4 Bibliography
5 See also

Duck consumption
The transformation of duck fat into consumer products (foie gras, duck breast,
confit ...) is mainly practiced in the south-west of France (New Aquitaine,
Occitanie) and in Alsace. This is a traditional practice that is now the subject of
much controversy. Traditional know-how is nevertheless included in the Inventory
of Intangible Cultural Heritage in France2.

Historical
In France, there are two regions producing foie gras and dishes prepared with
duck, Southwest and Alsace. The transformation of the duck has the particularity
of being an exercise feasible by all and at home, that is why very early, the
women of the homes took care to feed and transform the ducks to supplement
household income. The feeding was done in the cold season (December to
March), and the transformation of the meat in the spring, like the killer. It was at
this time of the year that families filled the cellars with meat for the year. In most
cases, for the duck, the livers were sold because they brought in a lot of money,
and the family kept the rest. Only well-to-do families could afford to keep duck
liver, which they only used for special occasions, such as baptism, communion,
and engagement, Christmas or New Year. The transformation of the duck was a
common event throughout the village. The women met (and took the opportunity
to judge their work) and proceeded to work the duck, which lasted three to four
days. The ducks were first killed, plucked and washed, then hung on a beam in a
ventilated space. The feathers were kept, washed, dried and sold to a rag or kept
for its own pillows and comforters. On the second day, the ducks were cut up. We
took out the livers and the meat that was put in the salt. The third and fourth
days were devoted to the preparation of preserves and pâtés.

View the model documentation

This family process of processing ducks corresponds to an economy of self-
sufficiency that lasted until the 1980s-90s. Today and in most cases, the process is
shorter because the ducks are bought and already prepared at the time of
purchase (plucked and washed). Families still rearing their ducks have become
rare.

As before, the first day is dedicated to cutting the duck, extracting the livers and
setting the meat pieces to salt. The duck is therefore first cut starting with the
wings, then the beak, and the neck. The digestive tract is removed, as is the entire
internal system. This stage is traditionally performed by women. The organs must
not pierce. Duck fat is recovered for future cooking. The liver is then extracted,
placed in saline water, then separated in two and denervated. It is then salted and
peppered and can be cooked. The cuisine of the foie gras requires a lot of work of
attention and attention to detail. Salting is very important for both taste and
preservation. The rest of the duck is cut into four parts: the two thighs and the
two duck breasts. These pieces are salted and placed in a straw box that will
absorb the water of ducks caused by salt.

The second day is the day of the preparation of the pieces of meat. All are cooked
in the fat duck, previously melted. Once cooked, the legs and other pieces are
placed in jars, covered with fat and sterilized. You can also make rillettes with
small pieces of meat that have unhooked during cooking. Finally, pâté is
sometimes made with duck breast and other pieces of duck.