DUCKS for Kids | 15 duck facts for kids and toddlers YOU DIDN'T KNOW!

Welcome to Stelio! Ducks are adorable and almost friendly creatures. If they see you with food, they'll follow you or even peck at you. Ducks are birds and they are found everywhere except Antarctica. While they are in the same family as swans and geese, ducks are smaller and have shorter necks. Ducks are mostly aquatic birds, which means that they live on or around water and are found in both fresh and seawater. Ducks have been domesticated as pets and farm animals for more than 500 years and are used for their feathers, eggs and meat. Male ducks are called drakes. Female ducks are called hens. Baby ducks are called ducklings. It takes 26 to 35 days for a duckling to hatch. A group of ducks is called a paddling. Ducks are amazing animals with a lot of unique capabilities. Find out more about these creatures with these 15 fascinating and fun duck facts. Ducks are outgoing social animals who feel most at ease when they are in a larger group of other ducks. These groups are called rafts or teams. Ducks can live up to 20 years depending on the species and if well cared for. All ducks have highly waterproof feathers. A duck's feathers are so waterproof that even when the duck dives underwater, the downy underlayer of feathers right next to the skin will stay completely dry. Ducks are omnivores and will eat grass, aquatic plants, insects, seeds, fruit and small fish among other types of food. Ducks fly in a V-shape. This shape makes flying easier. Most duck species only have one partner at a time, but they do not often mate for life. Instead, they will seek out new mates each year, choosing the healthiest, strongest, best mate who can help them pass on their genes to a new duckling generation. Did you know that the production of duck eggs is affected by daylight? When there is more daylight, the ducks will lay more eggs. This is why farmers use artificial lighting so that the ducks have around 17 hours of light a day to produce eggs efficiently. Ducks have accents. City ducks have a different accent than country ducks, which is typically louder. Ducklings communicate before hatching. Ducklings, like other waterfowl, learn to communicate with each other in the eggs and try to hatch at the same time. Ducklings younger than 10 days tend to swim and walk as a group, always close to their mother, to avoid the attack of predators. Ducks have great vision. Ducks have exceptional visuals and can see finer detail at farther distances than humans. Ducks also have great eyes and they can move each eye independently. Ducks can see well underwater. They use their sight to hunt underwater and this is one of the ways they feed and look for food for their young ones. Ducks also have a furred eyelid, more like swimming goggles or contact lenses, which makes it possible for them to squint and see clearly underwater. Ducks can sleep with one eye open. This allows them to watch for predators while they slumber. Duck bills are very sensitive and have many touch receptors, making them similar to our fingertips and palms. Some people are scared of ducks. The fear of ducks is called anatidophobia. What do you like most about ducks?