TERRITORIALITY AND REPRODUCTIVE-BEHAVIOR OF MELLER DUCK ANAS-MELLERI

Meller's duck Anas melleri is a non-dichromatic bird endemic to Madaga scar. It has been considered a recent island isolate of the northern m allard A. platyrhynchos based on its superficial resemblance to the fe male mallard and on historical records of captive. A. melleri females hybridising with more colourful males of other species. This paper giv es an account of aspects of reproductive behaviour observed in a capti ve Rock of. A. melleri. This species showed marked territoriality thro ughout egg laying and incubation, Males remained paired to the females during observations and pairs may last for several seasons. Anas mell eri does not routinely use forced extra pair copulation (FEPC) as a re productive strategy. These aspects of reproductive behaviour differ ma rkedly to those of A. platyrhynchos.