Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (orig. US) a type of hairstyle, esp. as adopted by teddyboys and rockers, in which the back of the hair is turned upwards in a manner similar to a duck’s tail; note unusual adv. use in cit. 1961.

1961		H. Ellison ‘No Game for Children’ in Gentleman Junkie 76: He had brown hair that he wore duck-ass.
[1962		(con. 1953–7) L. Yablonsky Violent Gang (1967) 84: Zoot yourself and plaster your hair until it looks like a duck’s behind].
1963		M. Braly Shake Him Till He Rattles (1964) 23: His hair was long and combed into a glossy duck’s-butt.
1967		in S. Harris Hellhole 234: The greatest single affection among the ‘stud broads’ [...] is the close-cropped men’s haircut, ranging from a practical crew to the popular ‘Duck’s Ass.’.
1974		(con. 1940s) E. Thompson Tattoo (1977) 45: Bucky was tall [...] with olive skin and long straight black hair he combed meticulously into a perfect duck’s ass.
1976		M. Braly False Starts 44: Everyone tried to avoid the hook to the barber shop, at least long enough to grow the beginning of a duckass.
1999		G. Seal Lingo 109: The hairstyle referred to here was usually known as a cornel wilder and was one of a number of US cuts affected by bodgies [...] The rock-and-roll variant of these styles was usually called a duck’s arse.
2000		Indep. Mag. 9 Dec. 21: The funny haircuts confused people [...] The way they sprang from the forehead like an oily prodding finger, the way that they were called ‘duck’s arse’ and ‘elephant’s trunk’.

2. attrib. use of sense 1.

1958		H. Ellison Web of the City (1983) 143: Black leather jackets, chino slacks, stomping boots [...] duck-fanny haircuts.
1962		‘David Forrest’ Hollow Woodheap 179: St. Joseph the Bloody Worker skirted quietly around The Professor, bestowing on the stove-pipe pants and duck bum’s haircut a look of extreme dissatisfaction.
1969		N. Cohn Awopbop. (1970) 58: He looked like another sub-Elvis, smooth flesh and duck-ass hair.
1986		S. King It (1987) 344: Even when he was the werewolf he still had a sort of a duck’s ass haircut.
1992		R. Price Clockers 33: A forward-thrusting blond-turning-gray duck’s ass haircut.

3. (Irish) a soggy cigarette butt.

1993		R. Doyle Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha 252: I made sure my lips were dry so I wouldn’t put a duck’s arse on it.
2001		G. Coughlan Everyday Eng. and Sl. 🌐 Duck’s Arse (n): wet fag butt.