Anserinae
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 A Swan Goose (Anser cygnoides)
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Cygninae |
The Anserinae is a subfamily in the waterfowl family Anatidae. It includes the swans and true geese. Under alternative systematical concepts (see e.g. Terres & NAS, 1991), it is split into two subfamilies, the Anserinae containing the geese (and also the whistling-ducks), while the Cygninae contain the swans.
A number of other waterbirds, mainly related to the shelducks, have "goose" as part of their name; see the family page at Anatidae and the goose page for these.
[edit] Systematics
- Genus Cygnus - true swans
- The black-and-yellow-billed swans are sometimes separated in the genus Olor.
True Geese - tribe Anserini
- Genus Anser - grey geese
- Genus Chen - white geese (sometimes merged into Anser)
- Genus Branta - black geese
Unresolved
- Genus Coscoroba - Coscoroba Swan
The following two genera are distinct from other geese and often elevated to a subfamily of its own (Cereopsinae), or alternatively into the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae:
Tribe Cereopsini
- Genus Cereopsis - Cape Barren Goose
- Genus Cnemiornis - New Zealand geese (prehistoric)
There are some enigmatic subfossils of very large goose-like birds from the Hawaiian Islands which do not appear to be moa-nalos (goose-sized dabbling ducks). They cannot be assigned to any genus living today, though most if not all may be fairly close to Branta:
- Wetmore's Goose, Geochen rhuax - initially alied with Cereopsis, but this seems hardly correct for reasons of biogeography.
- Giant Hawai‘i Goose, ?Branta sp.
- Giant O‘ahu Goose, Anatidae sp. et gen. indet.
[edit] References
- Terres, John K. & National Audubon Society (1991): The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds. Wings Books, New York. ISBN 0-517-03288-0
