page_title: Anatidae
section_title: Genera
hierarchical_section_title: Anatidae / Genera
caption_attribution_description: English: Wood Duck or Carolina Duck Aix Sponsa.
context_page_description: The Anatidae are the biological family of water birds that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents. These birds are adapted for swimming, floating on the water surface, and in some cases diving in at least shallow water. The family contains around 146 species in 43 genera.
  They are generally herbivorous, and are monogamous breeders. A number of species undertake annual migrations. A few species have been domesticated for agriculture, and many others are hunted for food and recreation. Five species have become extinct since 1600, and many more are threatened with extinction.
context_section_description: For the living and recently extinct members of each genus, see the article List of Anatidae species.
  Subfamily: Dendrocygninae (one pantropical genus, of distinctive long-legged goose-like birds)
  Dendrocygna, whistling ducks (8 living species)
  Thalassornis, white-backed duck
  Subfamily: Anserinae, swans and geese (3–7 extant genera with 25–30 living species, mainly cool temperate Northern Hemisphere, but also some Southern Hemisphere species, with the swans in one genus [two genera in some treatments], and the geese in three genera [two genera in some treatments]. Some other species are sometimes placed herein, but seem somewhat more distinct [see below])
  Cygnus, true swans (6 species, 4 sometimes separated in Olor)
  Anser, grey geese (7 species)
  Chen, white geese (3 species, sometimes included in Anser)
  Branta, black geese (6 living species)
  Subfamily: Stictonettinae (one genus in Australia, formerly included in the Oxyurinae, but with anatomy suggesting a distinct ancient lineage perhaps closest to the Anserinae, especially the Cape Barren goose)
  Stictonetta, freckled duck
  Subfamily: Plectropterinae (one genus in Africa, formerly included in the "perching ducks", but closer to the Tadorninae)
  Plectropterus, spur-winged goose
  Subfamily: Tadorninae – shelducks and sheldgeese (This group of larger, often semiterrestrial waterfowl can be seen as intermediate between Anserinae and Anatinae. The 1986 revision has resulted in the inclusion of 10 extant genera with about two-dozen living species [one probably extinct] in this subfamily, mostly from the Southern Hemisphere but a few in the Northern Hemisphere;  the affiliations of several presumed tadornine genera has later been questioned and the group in the traditional lineup is likely to be paraphyletic.)
  Pachyanas, Chatham Island duck (prehistoric)
  Tadorna, shelducks (6 species, 1 probably extinct) – possibly paraphyletic
  Radjah, Radjah shelduck
  Salvadorina, Salvadori's teal
  Centrornis, Madagascar sheldgoose (prehistoric, tentatively placed here)
  Alopochen, Egyptian goose and Mascarene shelducks (1 living species, 2 extinct)
  Neochen, (2 species)
  Chloephaga, sheldgeese (4 species)
  Hymenolaimus, blue duck
  Merganetta, torrent duck
  Subfamily: Aythyinae, diving ducks (Some 15 species of diving ducks, of worldwide distribution, in two to four genera; The 1986 morphological analysis suggested the probably extinct pink-headed duck of India, previously treated separately in Rhodonessa, should be placed in Netta, but this has been questioned. Furthermore, while morphologically close to dabbling ducks, the mtDNA data indicate a treatment as distinct subfamily is indeed correct, with the Tadorninae being actually closer to dabbling ducks than the diving ducks)
  Netta, red-crested pochard and allies (4 species, 1 probably extinct)
  Aythya, pochards, scaups, etc. (12 species)
  Subfamily: Anatinae, dabbling ducks and moa-nalos (The dabbling duck group, of worldwide distribution, were previously restricted to just one or two genera, but had been extended to include eight extant genera and about 55 living species, including several genera formerly known as the "perching ducks"; mtDNA on the other hand confirms that the genus Anas is over-lumped and casts doubt on the diving duck affiliations of several genera [see below]. The moa-nalos, of which four species in three genera are known to date, are a peculiar group of flightless, extinct anatids from the Hawaiian Islands. Gigantic in size and with massive bills, they were believed to be geese, but have been shown to be actually very closely related to mallards. They evolved filling the ecological niche of turtles, ungulates, and other megaherbivores.
  Anas:  pintails, mallards, etc. (40–50 living species, 3 extinct)
  Chendytes, diving-geese (prehistoric) (A basal member of the dabbling duck clade)
  Spatula, shovelers
  Mareca, wigeons and gadwalls
  Lophonetta, crested duck
  Speculanas, bronze-winged duck
  Amazonetta, Brazilian teal
  Sibirionetta, Baikal teal
  Chelychelynechen, turtle-jawed moa-nalo (prehistoric)
  Thambetochen, large-billed moa-nalos (2 spec
caption: Wood duck Aix sponsa
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