Reproductive capacities of control mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) during a one-generation reproduction study

The Mallard duck (Anas Platyrhynchos) is the waterfowl model of choice for testing the reproductive impairment of pesticides and environmental contaminants. The literature contains numerous reports on the effects of pesticides on egg shell development for mallards, quail and other avian species. Limited control data for reproductive evaluation of pesticides can be found. This paper summarizes one generation reproduction results from 75 control female mallard ducks. One male and five female adult ducks were housed in clean pens with tap water and game bird breeder ration available ad libitum. The pre-egg laying cycle was ten weeks in duration. For the first eight weeks, the photoperiod was seven hours light per day, after which the photoperiod was increased to 17 hours to induce egg laying. Eggs were collected daly for eight weeks and incubated. Shell thickness was measured on one egg from each pen bi-weekly. The mean reproductive indices are as follows: Eggs Cracked/Eggs Laid - 2.18%; Viable 11-Day Embryos/Eggs Set-85.2%; Live 21-Day Embryos/Viable 11-Day Survivors-97.6%; Hatchlings/Live 21-Day Embryos-80.6%; and 14-Day Survivors/Hatchlings-89.3%. The mean egg shell thickness for 60 eggs is 0.378 millimeters.