Baman Ducks

"You want to buy Baman ducks? Are we back in the stone age?"   "Oh, come on! Just look at them!"   "All I can see is the price tag..."

— Conversation overheard between two tourists

  The Baman duck is the first recorded instance of the domestication of ducks on the planet of Kivria. They were originally domesticated by the early Bamansano peoples, who would have belonged to the region now known as the Flood Wastes. In the modern era, they are a rare heritage breed renowned for their simple and goofy beauty, their meat production, and their friendliness.    At their peak, the Baman duck breed was found all across the globe as highly prized livestock. As other domesticated duck breeds rose to prominence, however, this breed was largely left behind as a quaint relic of the past. Throughout the breed's existence, it has frequently struggled to rise above lists of endangered domesticated animals.   A societal indifference to the plight of a single domesticated duck breed has hurt its cause in some cases. At the same time, the over-eagerness of many breeders to cross-breed for newer lines rather than to sustain the Baman line has also negatively impacted their numbers up into the present day. Every time thus far, however, a motley crew of determined farmers, animal sanctuaries such as zoos and aviaries, and waterfowl enthusiasts have managed to pull the breed back from the brink of extinction.   Today, the largest flocks of Baman ducks with reliable pedigrees are kept in rural areas bordering the Flood Wastes, fittingly close to their original range. Ducklings and hatching eggs from this region are notoriously expensive, but many discerning people are willing to pay the price.