Campbell Ducks are on the rare breed survival watchlist and were one of the first of the utility breeds designed in the 20th century. The breed was created by Mrs Adele Campbell, the Campbell largely took over as the top egg-laying duck. Campbells are lively and are good foragers, they enjoy slugs and snails in the garden. They are a very gentle, passive and friendly breed when raised by hand until maturity. They are a good choice of breed for young families and children to raise and aren’t particularly noisy.
The Campbell is the top egg-laying duck with some utility strains laying over 300 eggs a year. They can be broody over their eggs but if they are constantly removed, they don’t tend to get broody, egg production was favoured over the maternal gene. It is an active light breed with drakes weighing 2.3-2. and ducks 2.0-2.3kg. They come in a few variations of colour such as khaki, white, dark and pied. The khaki Campbell is the most common.
Campbells are very energetic little ducks that should be provided plenty of space to move around, they may fly. Campbells should not be kept in pairs. It is recommended that a male has 2 up to 10 females – depending on the drake’s energy levels. If the drake doesn’t have enough hens the hens can end up with injuries.
Breed Standard
Drake
- Carriage – streamlined with a modestly long head, bill, neck, and body, and a sprightly body carriage of 20 to 40 degrees above horizontal
- Head –green-bronze
- Upper neck, lower back, and tail culverts – brown-bronze
- Other Plumage – warm khaki
- Colour – Khaki
- Bill – dark greenish-blue
- Legs and Feet – Drake rich dark orange legs and feet
- Eyes – Dark brown
Duck
- Carriage – streamlined with a modestly long head, bill, neck, and body, and a sprightly body carriage of 20 to 40 degrees above horizontal
- Head – bronze brown
- Upper neck, lower back, and tail culverts – brown-bronze
- Other Plumage – warm khaki
- Colour – Khaki
- Bill – green
- Legs and Feet – Dark brown
- Eyes –brown
Campbell Ducks are currently on the Rare Breed Survival Trusts watchlist: for more information, please use the following link: https://www.rbst.org.uk/campbell
