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Motor Incoordination, Intracranial Fat Bodies, and Breeding Strategy in Crested Ducks (Anas platyrhynchos f.d.)

C. and O. Vogt Institute of Brain Research (Behaviour and Brain), University of Düsseldorf, Universitätsstr. 1, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany, and Scientific Poultry Yard of the German Association of Poultry Breeders, D-41569 Rommerskirchen, Germany

¹ Corresponding author: cnotkaj{at}uni-duesseldorf.de

Some Crested ducks (CR) are burdened with an intracranial fat body that, depending on the size and location, may lead to varying degrees of motor incoordination. A behavioral test is proposed that helps to identify those CR individuals bearing the problematical fat body. The test consists of putting the ducks on their backs and measuring the time required to right themselves. This was repeated 13 times per animal, and means were calculated. The minimum time required was 0.5 s, and the maximum was 62.6 s. Individuals that show motor incoordination need more time than ducks without such problems (14.3 s in contrast to 1.2 s) and exhibit a larger intracranial fat body. Ducks used for breeding should require no more than approximately 1 to 2 s to right themselves. In an allometric comparison with 3 other domestic duck breeds, CR show a significantly smaller brain; specifically, the cerebellum, tegmentum, apicale hyperpallium, and olfactory bulb are reduced. The relationship between fat body and these structures was discussed.

Key Words: Crested duck • motor incoordination • intracranial fat body • righting test • breeding management