Genome sequencing and assembly for four duck species (family Anatidae), including the obligate brood parasite Hetronetta atricapilla (black-headed duck)

With seven independent origins among birds, obligate brood parasitism offers a powerful framework for comparative genomic analysis and the opportunity to examine the genomic consequences of a major life history transition, the loss of parental care. This project contributes to a broader effort to compare genome evolution in all seven brood parasitic clades among birds, and to test the prediction that the evolution of brood parasitism (and loss of parental care behavior) results in genome-wide signatures of molecular convergence and/or convergent changes in coding and/or regulatory regions associated with particular genetic pathways or functions. The focal species for this project is the brood parasitic black-headed duck (Heteronetta atricapilla), which is compared to representatives of three closely related genera: African pygmy goose (Nettapus auratus), ruddy duck (Oxyura jamaicensis), and freckled duck (Stictonetta naevosa).