Anserinae
The Anserinae are 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 contain the geese and the ducks, while the Cygninae contain the swans.
| Anserinae Temporal range: Middle Miocene to present | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Domestic geese Anser anser domesticus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Anserinae Vigors, 1825 |
| Genera | |
|
See text | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Cygninae | |
Systematics
- Genus Cygnus – true swans: The black-and-yellow-billed swans are sometimes separated in the genus Olor.
True geese
- Genus Anser – grey and white geese
- Genus Branta – black geese
Unresolved
- Genus Coscoroba – coscoroba swan
These two genera are distinct from other geese and often elevated to a subfamily of their own (Cereopsinae), or alternatively into the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae:
- Genus Cereopsis – Cape Barren goose
- Genus Cnemiornis – New Zealand geese (prehistoric)
Some enigmatic subfossils of very large goose-like birds from the Hawaiian Islands 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:
- Geochen rhuax – initially allied with Cereopsis, but this seems hardly correct for reasons of biogeography.
- Giant Hawaiʻi goose, ?Branta sp.
- Giant Oʻahu goose, Anatidae sp. et gen. indet.
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
Further reading
- Gonzalez, J.; Düttmann, H.; Wink, M. (2009). "Phylogenetic relationships based on two mitochondrial genes and hybridization patterns in Anatidae". Journal of Zoology. 279: 310–318. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2009.00622.x.
External links
