Duckbill Masks Are Great

I wrote about these [LW · GW] when they first came out and have been wearing them since then, with good results. It looks like Amazon isn't selling them directly anymore (only via third-party sellers) but Northern Safety has them for $0.59 each, and sometimes for $0.19 each on sale. (The brand is different but it's the same mask.)

I bought these after seeing Wei Dai's post [LW · GW]. Everyone in my family and in-person friend group refuses to wear this mask because it makes them look like a duck (besides one person, who refuses to wear it because it is harder to breathe through compared to a surgical mask). So I am the only one wearing this mask. So I agree with your assessment that "the main problem is that they make you look a bit like a duck", but I would add that this is apparently a very strong effect. People really would prefer to be less comfortable or increase their risk of COVID than to look weird.

I expect some of this is different masks, being a good fit for people with different shaped heads and different preferences

I've worn these before, but with long slippery hair they don't stay on that well and also mess up my hair like crazy

Is there a reason why you prefer it over the 3M Aura Respirator Mask 9330 which is N99?

I can't seem to find such masks in Europe, e.g., on Amazon.de. If anybody else has more luck here, please post.

Thanks for sharing, I hadn't seen these before and will try them. Do you reuse them?

To latch on to something else from your post, it's interesting to hear some people observe that they have more trouble breathing with some masks than others, or with masks than no masks, while others don't. Personally, I haven't noticed any difference, and do a lot of sporting activities (bouldering, jogging 10km) with a mask without feeling like it makes a difference.

These masks are also exceedingly uncommon in my Northeastern US town + the surrounding area; I think I've seen fewer than 5 people wearing one since late 2020. None of them were unusually coloured, either. In my experience, most establishments where masks can be purchased don't carry these pouch-masks. It would be surprising and funny to see a whole group of people will yellow duckbill masks. Also, thank you for teaching me a new word (anatine "of or belonging to the surface-feeding ducks of Anas and closely related genera"). I wish your daughter a hasty recovery.