Black East Indian Duck

Howard places the Black East Indian with the Call as one of the bantam breeds of ducks. Lamon and Slocum describe it as a small black breed and make the comparison more specific: in their account, it is a miniature Cayuga. Neither passage gives a place of origin for the breed.

• The Black East Indian and the Call ducks are the bantam breeds of ducksHoward, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• This is a black breed which is small in size being a bantam duck like the Call.Lamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese

The two entries are brief in different ways. Howard gives the Black East Indian a place among the small exhibition ducks, while Lamon and Slocum use the Cayuga as the comparison point for its type and color. The books do not give a founding country, a date, or a story of how the breed began.

• The Black East Indian and the Call ducks are the bantam breeds of ducksHoward, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• The color should be black throughout and the same color characteristics hold true as in the case of the Cayuga.Lamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese

Start with the head. Howard describes it as short and small, with dark hazel eyes and a rather short bill. The drake has a dark yellowish green head without spots or blemishes, while the duck is very dark, almost black. Lamon and Slocum make the drake bill a very dark green and the duck bill black.

• The head of the black East Indian duck is short and small; eyes dark hazel; bill rather short.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• The head of the drake is of a dark yellowish green, free from all spots or blemishes, and the duck's head is very dark, almost black.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• the bill of the duck should be black but that of the drake should be very dark green.Lamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese

The plumage is meant to read as black first, with color appearing as a sheen rather than a separate pattern. Howard calls it rich black with a brilliant greenish tint throughout and says the neck, back, and shoulder coverts show more green than the underparts. Lamon and Slocum also require black throughout and warn about white in the breast of females.

• The plumage is a rich black, with a brilliant greenish tint throughout.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• The plumage upon the neck, back, and shoulder coverts will show more of the green than will the underpartsHoward, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management

The rest of the outline is compact but not round. Howard gives a neatly curved short neck, a good-length medium-width back, a full and round breast, a long comparatively small body, medium wings that fold neatly, and a short tail. The drake has curled feathers in that tail; the thighs and shanks are short.

• The neck is neatly curved and short; back, of good length and medium width.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• The breast is full, round, and plump. The body is long and comparatively small; wings of medium length and nicely folded; tail short, and in the drake has the curled feathers.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management

Howard presents the Black East Indian as a shy, roaming bird. It is given to long flights, does not do well when confined, and prefers freedom of life. That makes its behavior part of the breed portrait, not just a note about its appearance.

• The East Indian duck is very shy in its habits, and is given to long flightsHoward, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• They can not be successfully bred in confinement; their natures are roaming and they like freedom of life.Howard, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management

The sitting habit is one of the clearest points the books attach to this small breed. Howard calls these ducks splendid sitters and says they will steal their nests if permitted to do so. Lamon and Slocum place the Black East India among the broody breeds.

• They are splendid sitters, and will invariably steal their nests if permitted to do soHoward, 1897, Ducks and Geese: Standard Breeds and Management
• The Muscovy, the Call and the Black East India ducks are broody breeds.Lamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese

Lamon and Slocum give a short practical warning about the bill: the drake should not have a black bill, and the breed differs from the Cayuga in that the drake bill should be very dark green. Their entry also says purple barring should be selected against, so the desired black is not simply any dark-looking pattern.

• Avoid breeding from a drake with a black billLamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese
• Purple barring must be carefully selected against.Lamon & Slocum, 1922, Ducks and Geese