Gushi Ma Duck

Gushi Ma Duck

　　Gushi Ma Duck is a specialty of Gushi County in Xinyang City, Henan Province. The meat of Gushi Ma Duck is tender, especially the broth from adult drakes, which is delicious and highly nutritious—making it an essential food for local women during their postpartum confinement.

　　The central production area of Gushi Ma Duck is Gushi County and surrounding counties in Henan Province. It is a high-quality local breed, with the county raising over 1 million ducks annually.

　　This duck is a medium-sized dual-purpose (egg and meat) Ma Duck, with the majority of its feathers being brownish speckled. Female ducks have a yellow or white eyebrow stripe above the eyes, brown irises, and very rarely blue ones. Their chest and abdomen are lighter in color. The beak is bluish-yellow, though often appearing black. The toes are yellowish-red, with a few being reddish-black, and the skin is white. Male ducks usually have blackish-green glossy feathers on the upper part of the head and neck. Their wings and tail have some black feathers. The front chest and abdomen are light-colored, mostly light white, and a few have a white ring around the neck.

　　Adult male Gushi Ma Ducks weigh 1.44 kg, while females weigh 1.38 kg. They lay 110–150 eggs per year, with an average egg weight of about 60.81 grams, and begin laying at 5–6 months of age.

　　Slaughter yield: Male ducks have a semi-eviscerated rate of 83.1% and a fully eviscerated rate of 72.8%. Female ducks have a semi-eviscerated rate of 85.1% and a fully eviscerated rate of 71.6%.

　　This duck breed has good flocking behavior, strong adaptability, tolerance to coarse feed, good walking ability, strong foraging skills, and is suitable for free-range grazing.

　　The shells of Gushi Ma Duck eggs are bluish or light bluish in color, with large, red yolks. Locals often pickle them around the Qingming Festival, and one standout dish is “thin pancake rolls with duck eggs.”