"There is a bird available that possesses virtually every quality one could ask of such fowl. It is small (and thus easily kept in a relatively small area), it is quiet (its array of soft whistles and other noises is neither loud nor unpleasant to the ear), and it is one of the most beautiful and ornamental birds in the entire world. You want more? O.K., how about that it is fairly easy to obtain, relatively inexpensive, can be raised on feed products commonly available, and it requires no federal or state license to keep it.
I am speaking, of course, of the Mandarin Duck. A close relative of our North American Wood Duck, (they are the only two members of the genus Aix, the Mandarin being Aix galericulata and the Wood Duck being Aix sponsa. The Wood Duck is exclusively native to North America while the Mandarin is native to China, Japan, and Russia, where relatively small wild populations survive to the present day under government protection. "acornhollowbantums.
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