The Cayuga duck is used for meat and egg production and does well at poultry shows. The name comes from where it was once very popular, Cayuga Lake, New York State. Admitted into the American Standard of Perfection in 1874.
Noted feature is the iridescent beetle green color coming from the black feathers in the correct light. However, as Cayugas age, they naturally molt into gradually more white feathering — more so in hens than in drakes.
The Cayuga duck is one of the most popular ducks for showing. They are very active foragers and love to eat snails, slugs and other destructive insects. The Cayuga duck is calm and does not fly and lays both white and darker eggs. The darker eggs have a dark film on the egg shell and are really not a dark shell.