Rubber duck

The quintessential yellow rubber duck

Some variations on the standard rubber duck. Clockwise from left: a miniature rubber duck, a purple devil rubber duck, a rubber duck dressed as a reindeer for Christmas, a rubber duck in sunglasses, and a black "dead" rubber duck that floats upside down

A rubber duck, or rubber duckie, is a toy shaped like a duck that is made of rubber or rubber-like material such as vinyl plastic. Almost all contemporary rubber ducks are made out of vinyl plastic rather than rubber. Most commonly, rubber ducks are designed to be used as floating bathtub toys for children.

Not all rubber ducks are bath toys. Some rubber ducks are dolls or play figures similar to other squeeze or squeak toys typically given to children and sometimes dogs. Rubber ducks can be found in various colors, sizes, shapes, and outfits to suit any occasion. Rubber ducks have achieved status as a popular icon and, while still primarily considered a children's toy, are used and loved by people of all ages. Some adult stores now sell vibrating rubber ducks, as well as ducks in bondage.

Rubber ducks may be equipped with a squeaker that makes a whistling or squeaking sound. More rarely the toy may have a squeaker that makes a sound resembling the quack of a real duck. Bath toy ducks sometimes have a hole in the bill which allows the toy to take in and then squirt water.

The rubber duck has become a popular form factor for USB flash drives. These devices are not intended to be used as bath toys.

The history of the first rubber duck is not known, however the history of the rubber duck is inevitably linked to that of rubber manufacturing, the development of early rubber (and later synthetic rubber) toys including cars and dolls, and the advent of squeak toys which dates to at least the late 1800s. Although squeak toys are often thought of as dog toys many people still enjoy the squeaking rubber duck.

Ernie, a popular Muppet from Sesame Street, has helped to popularize the floating rubber duck bath toy with his song "Rubber Duckie", though rubber ducks existed long before the advent of this television show. The yellow rubber duck has achieved an iconic status in American pop culture. In the United States the rubber duck is often symbolically linked to bathing or bath tubs and to babies and toddlers.

As the rubber duck has grown in popularity over the years, many variants are sold including "devil ducks" and "dead ducks"

In 2001 a popular British tabloid newspaper reported that Queen Elizabeth II has a rubber duck that wears an inflatable crown in her bathroom. The duck was spotted by a workman who was repainting her bathroom and later reported it to The Sun newspaper. The story prompted sales of rubber ducks in the United Kingdom to increase by 80% for a short period.

A common name for a rubber duck is "Squeaky" or "Squiggle".

Rubber ducks are collected by a small number of enthusiasts in countries including: Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, United States Of America, and the Netherlands. The Guinness World Record for World's Largest Rubber Duck Collection numbered 1,437 unique rubber ducks in 2003.

The rubber duck can be referred to informally as a rubberr duckie or a rubberrr ducky. Amongst collectors of rubber ducks, the spelling rubber duckie has achieved prominence, but both spellings are considered acceptable.

Some charities have run rubber duck races in which hundreds or thousands of rubber ducks are dumped into a river, pool, or other body of water and then are floated down a race course marked off with buoys. The first one to float past the finish line is a winner. (This is similar to the game Poohsticks.) The rubber ducks are then retrieved and used again later. Due to environmental concerns, sites for duck races must be chosen with care.

Rubber Ducks in Movies and Popular Culture

In the country song Convoy (1975), by C. W. McCall, the truck driver protagonist uses the CB radio handle "Rubber Duck". In the 1978 film based on the song, the Rubber Duck character is played by Kris Kristofferson. McCall also did a sequel song, Round the World with the Rubber Duck, which appears on his 1976 album, Rubber Duck.
In the movie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), the character Arthur Weasley, on meeting Harry Potter for the first time, says: "Now, Harry you must know all about Muggles, tell me, what exactly is the function of a rubber duck?".
In the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004), the character Truth says: "Don't look! Quick! Think of a yellow, rubber duck!"

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