Explore MotherDuck Data

Use this skill when you need to discover what databases, tables, and columns exist in a MotherDuck account; preview and sample data; understand schemas and data types; find shared databases; or search the data catalog.

Prerequisites

• Establish a MotherDuck connection first via connect.

Default Posture

• Explore top-down: databases, then tables/views, then columns, then statistics, then sample rows.
• Use fully qualified table names once more than one database is attached.
• Check shared databases before concluding that data is unavailable.
• Use MCP exploration tools when available because they return structured results faster than ad hoc SQL.

Workflow

1. List databases in scope.
2. List tables and views in the target database.
3. Inspect columns, types, nullability, and comments before writing queries.
4. Run SUMMARIZE on important tables to understand ranges, cardinality, and null rates.
5. Preview rows and only then move into analytical SQL or modeling work.

Open Next

• references/EXPLORATION_PLAYBOOK.md for the full SQL workflow, share discovery patterns, MCP tool guidance, and common exploration mistakes

Related Skills

• connect for session setup and authentication
• query for analytical SQL after the schema is understood
• duckdb-sql for DuckDB syntax patterns during exploration
• share-data for creating and consuming shares once shared datasets become part of the workflow