Muscovy duck removal for HOAs and community lakes
A non-native duck fouling your docks, pool decks, and retention lakes isn't a bird you have to live with. We remove Muscovy ducks legally under the USFWS control order, manage the nests so the flock can't rebuild, and hand your board the documentation to show it. Free assessment across Palm Beach County.
Legal
under the USFWS control order
Documented
service records for the board
Scheduled
on a program that fits the community
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One or two ducks is charming. A resident flock is a board problem.
Muscovies don't stay a few. Once a community's lakes and lawns are feeding them, the flock settles in and grows — and the complaints follow it around the property. Here's what a board actually ends up dealing with.
Dock & pool-deck fouling
A settled flock leaves droppings all over docks, pool decks, sidewalks, and clubhouse patios. It's a daily cleanup for staff and a slip-and-fall complaint waiting to land on the board.
Retention-lake water quality
Dozens of ducks on one small stormwater lake load the water with waste and feathers. That nutrient load feeds algae and fouls the lake the community's drainage actually depends on.
Aggression around nesting
Muscovies get bold at feeding spots and territorial through nesting season. Residents get chased, kids get nipped, and the board starts fielding calls about a duck problem instead of a duck.
Overpopulation, fast
A hen can raise multiple broods a year, and this is a non-native duck with no real check on it here. A handful this spring becomes a flock by fall if nothing changes.
Slip-hazard sidewalks
Wet droppings on shaded sidewalks and pool decks are genuinely slick. On shared HOA walkways that's a liability the association carries — one more reason boards want the flock managed, not fed.
Yes, you can remove them — and here's why that's true.
This is the first question every board asks, and it's the right one. Native ducks and geese are federally protected — you genuinely can't remove those, and any honest company will tell you so. The Muscovy ducks living on South Florida's community lakes are a different bird entirely: a non-native, domestic-origin duck that's become established across the region's ponds, canals, and retention areas.
Because they're non-native, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service issued a control order that allows their removal, along with nest and egg management. That's the legal footing this whole service stands on. It also means step one on every property is confirming the bird — we identify what you actually have before anything is touched, because getting that wrong is exactly the mistake a community can't afford.
We're not attorneys and we won't pretend the rules never shift, so we keep the work squarely inside the control order and document it. That combination — legal footing plus a paper trail — is what lets a board move forward with confidence instead of a maybe.
Assess, remove, stop the rebuild, report back.
Pulling the visible ducks off the lake is the easy part. The steps around it — managing the nests, killing the feeding habit, and documenting the whole thing for the board — are what actually keeps the flock from coming right back.
- 1
Assess the lakes & flock
We walk the community's lakes, ponds, and retention areas, confirm the birds are Muscovies, and get a real count of the flock and where it beds down and nests.
- 2
Humane removal under the order
We remove the resident Muscovies humanely, working under the USFWS control order that covers this non-native duck. No poisons, no drama for residents watching from the balcony.
- 3
Nest & egg management
We find and manage active nests and eggs so the flock can't just rebuild the week after we leave. Skip this step and you're paying for the same removal every spring.
- 4
Deterrence & feeding guidance
The root cause is almost always residents feeding them. We put deterrence and clear feeding and landscaping guidance in front of the board so the lakes stop drawing a new flock.
- 5
Reporting to the board
You get a written service record of what was done and when — the documentation a board or property manager can file, share with residents, and keep for the association.
Boards need it handled quietly — and on the record.
Two things make a duck program work for a community: doing it humanely and out of the spotlight, and being able to prove exactly what was done. We handle the birds within the USFWS control order — no poisons, no scene for residents on the lanai — and we write it all down so the association has a clean record on file.
- Humane removal under the USFWS control order — no poisons, no spectacle
- Discreet on shared lakes, pool decks, and clubhouse grounds
- Written service records a board or property manager can file and share
Community duck programs across Palm Beach County.
We run Muscovy programs for HOAs, condos, and gated communities from the coastal buildings to the lake-lined subdivisions out west. Based in Lake Worth, so scheduled visits stay on schedule. Pick your city for the local read.
Priced to the community, starting with a free assessment.
There's no flat sticker price on a duck program, because no two communities are the same. A single clubhouse pond with a dozen birds is a different job than a gated community with a lake on every street and a flock that's been building for years. So we price it to the property — and the assessment that gets you that number is free, with the price in writing before any work starts and no contract you can't cancel.
What a program includes
- A walk of the community's lakes, ponds, and retention areas, with the flock confirmed and counted.
- Humane removal of the resident Muscovies, worked under the USFWS control order.
- Nest and egg management so the flock can't rebuild the following season.
- Deterrence and feeding guidance for the board, plus written service records for the file.
What sets the price
Mostly the number of lakes and retention areas we're covering, how large and established the flock is, and how often the program needs a visit to stay ahead of it. A community that's been feeding a flock for years takes more work up front than one calling at the first sign of a problem — and the sooner a board acts, the cheaper it stays.
HOAs, condos & communities
This is community work, and it lines up with the rest of what we do for boards across the county — from HOA iguana control on the same lake banks to golf-course programs and the broader nuisance wildlife that turns up in shared common areas. Whether it's a condo on the water in North Palm Beach or lakes out west, one point of contact handles it. When you're ready, get in touch and we'll set the assessment.
What HOAs and boards say.
Muscovy duck questions.
Duck flock on your community lakes?
Call or text Nick — he'll walk the lakes and tell your board what it takes, straight.
Call (561) 735-1975Is it legal to remove Muscovy ducks in Florida?
Yes. The Muscovy ducks on South Florida community lakes are a non-native, domestic-origin duck, not protected native waterfowl. Because they're non-native, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service issued a control order that allows their removal and nest and egg management. We work within that order and identify the birds carefully first — native ducks and geese are federally protected and we don't touch those.
Why are Muscovy ducks a problem for our community?
A settled flock fouls docks, pool decks, sidewalks, and clubhouse patios with droppings — a daily cleanup and a slip hazard on shared walkways. On a small retention lake all that waste hurts water quality, the birds get aggressive around feeding and nesting, and they overpopulate fast because nothing here keeps their numbers in check. It's a classic HOA and property-manager headache that only grows if it's left alone.
Do you handle whole community lakes and HOAs?
That's most of this work. We assess a community's lakes, ponds, and retention areas as a system, not one duck at a time, and build a program scaled to the property — a single clubhouse pond or every lake in a gated community. Boards and property managers get a single point of contact and written records they can file and share with residents.
Is the removal humane?
Yes. We remove the birds humanely and work within the USFWS control order for this non-native duck — no poisons and no spectacle for residents watching from their lanais. Handling the flock correctly and quietly is a big part of why communities call us instead of trying to manage it themselves.
What about the nests and eggs?
Nest and egg management is the step that actually holds. If you only remove the adult ducks, the flock rebuilds from the nests within a season. We locate and manage active nests and eggs as part of the program so the population can't quietly rebuild, then pair it with deterrence and feeding guidance to keep new birds from settling in.
How is a community program priced?
It's custom to the community — how many lakes and retention areas we're covering, how large the flock is, and how often the program needs a visit to stay ahead of it. A single clubhouse pond is a very different number than a gated community with a lake on every street. The assessment is free and the price is in writing before we start, with no contract you can't cancel.