Abstract.
The first observations of infanticide by a precocial avian species, Spot-billed Duck (Anas poecilorhyncha), were recorded on a small pond at Yatsu tidal flat, central Japan, from May to June 2000, where six families of conspecific and one Gadwall A. strepera family, respectively, occupied territories. A female Spot-billed Duck with 11 ducklings attacked ducklings of all the other families killing eight conspecifics and three of the Gadwall. High breeding density (15.0 families/ha) may have increased the aggression of the female.
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Shimada, T., Kuwabara, K., Yamakoshi, S. et al. A case of infanticide in the Spot-billed Duck in circumstances of high breeding density. J Ethol 20, 87–88 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-002-0058-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-002-0058-7
