Marbled Teal
Marmaronetta angustirostris
- Habitat: Wetlands, brackish waters rich in vegetation.
- Range: Fragmented distribution; eastern and western Mediterranean region, north and sub-Saharan west Africa, Iran, Pakistan and northwest India.
- Natural Diet: Aquatic plants (seeds, roots, tubers, green parts); also aquatic insects, larvae, mollusks, worms.
- Status in the Wild:
THREATENED
Fun Facts
- Marbled teal are beautiful sandy-brown in color with white
blotches that give them a marbled finish
- They are medium-sized dabbling ducks and they live in wetlands
and marshlands in the Mediterranean region
- This species is gregarious even during breeding season when flocks of teal build nests close to one another.
- Females are dull colored which helps them camouflage from
predators. They lay 7 to 10 eggs
in a clutch.
- They are excellent swimmers and divers
Conservation Threats
- It has been recorded that 50% of their habitat may have been destroyed in this century.
- Hydrological work and wetland drainage is known to have had a detrimental effect on several
breeding sites in their distibutional range.
- Marbled teal population numbers have also depleted due to illegal hunting.
Marbled teal have bred successfully at Micke Grove Zoo
Distributional range - The species are found in several small population in Europe, Asia, and northern African