Ornithology Commons^™

Annual Review Of The World Pheasant Association, 2009/2010, World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Reports and Other Materials

Chairman of Trustees' report.Tim Lovel

Treasurer's report for the year ended April 30, 2010, Ian Hoggarth

WPA around the world highlights from the chapters

Overview of the year's conservation activities, Philip J. K. McGowan

Making the Most of Resources

The IUCN-SSC/WPA Galliformes Specialist Group: A global network of technical excellence,Peter J. Garson and Ilse Storch

Highlights from the European Conservation Breeding Group, Heiner Jacken

Rejuvenating the United Kingdom Gaillformes census

Keeping count of Europe's Galliformes,Siro Serena

Developing conservation science leaders, Huw Lloyd

Planning to save our most threatened species, Philip J. K. McGowan

Just how important are Galliformes to humans? …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Sources Cited, Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

350+ citations

About Turkeys, The Humane Society Of The United States

Agribusiness Collection

John James Audubon, a well-known bird expert and nature enthusiast, described wild turkeys as birds of great beauty. The history and origin of wild turkeys is uncertain, yet many share Audubon’s sentiment that the wild turkey is “one of the most interesting of the birds indigenous to the United States of America.” Today, wild turkeys can be found throughout the nation. Following the selection of the bald eagle as the American symbol, Benjamin Franklin remarked that the turkey was more “respectable”, and a “true original native”.

About Chickens, The Humane Society Of The United States

Agribusiness Collection

The chicken is the world’s most numerous domesticated bird, with over 52 billion farmed worldwide in 2008, rivaling the dog as the most ubiquitous domestic animal globally. These birds have fascinated scholars and researchers since the dawn of Western civilization, and recent studies are beginning to reveal the depths of their complexity and cognitive ability. According to Andrew F. Fraser, professor of veterinary surgery at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Donald M. Broom, professor of animal welfare at University of Cambridge: “Those who have studied the behaviour of the domestic fowl in detail…, especially those who have looked at feral …

North America’S Ducks, Geese And Swans In The 21st Century: A 2010 Supplement To Waterfowl Of North America, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

Since the 1975 publication of Waterfowl of North America, a great deal of ornithological literature has appeared concerning North American ducks, geese & swans. The most significant of these are the species accounts in the American Ornithologists’ Union The Birds of North America (B.O.N.A.) series, 46 of which were published between 1993 and 2003, and which include all the species known to breed in the United States and Canada (see references).

Population data of wild species are constantly changing, and sometimes of limited accuracy, but long-term averages or trends are often significant. National population surveys such as the annual U.S. …

Waterfowl Of North America: Color Photographs (Following Page 50), Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

Trumpeter Swan, Adult (drinking)
Lesser Snow Goose (Blue Phase), Adult and young
Lesser Canada Goose, Adults
Atlantic Brant, Adult
Barnacle Goose, Adults
Wood Duck, Adult Male
American Wigeon, Pair
Gadwall, Pair
Green-winged Teal, Pair
Mexican Mallard, Adult Male
Florida Mallard, Pair
Northern Pintail, Pair
Blue-winged Teal, Pair
Cinnamon Teal, Pair
Shoveler, Pair
Canvasback, Pair
Redhead, Pair
Ring-necked Duck, Pair
Greater Scaup, Pair
King Eider, Pair
Steller Eider, Adults
Harlequin Duck,Male
Surf Scoter, Male
Bufflehead, Pair
Barrow Goldeneye, Pair
Common Goldeneye, Pair
Hooded Merganser, Displaying Male
Red-breasted Merganser, Male
Common Merganser, Pair
Ruddy Duck, Male

Waterfowl Of North America: Sources, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

Approximately 500 citations.

See also the updated bibliography in the 2010 supplement: "North America’s Ducks, Geese and Swans in the 21st Century"

Waterfowl Of North America: Whistling Ducks, Tribe Dendrocygnini, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

Whistling ducks comprise a group of nine species that are primarily of tropical and subtropical distribution. In common with the swans and true geese (which with them comprise the subfamily Anserinae), the included species have a reticulated tarsal surface pattern, lack sexual dimorphism in plumage, produce vocalizations that are similar or identical in both sexes, form relatively permanent pair bonds, and lack complex pair-forming behavior patterns. Unlike the geese and swans, whistling ducks have clear, often melodious whistling voices that are the basis for their group name. The alternative name, tree ducks, is far less appropriate, since few of the …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Anseranatini (Magpie Goose), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Other vernacular names. Semipalmated goose, pied goose, black-and-white goose; Spaltfussgans (German); oie pie (French); gans overo o pintado (Spanish).

This is the only species of true waterfowl with only partially webbed feet. Adults of both sexes are black on the head, neck, wings, rump, and tail, and white elsewhere. The bill is long and straight, with a well-developed nail at the tip; as in swans, the head is featherless back to the eyes. Females resemble males but are somewhat smaller, lack an enlarged bony crown, and have a higher-pitched voice. Adult males have an elongated trachea that loops downward between …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Contents, Preface, & Introduction, Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Inasmuch as the primary purpose of this book is to provide information on each of the species of the waterfowl family in a standardized format and easily accessible manner, it is important that the reader have some knowledge of the basis for my sequential organization of these species. A variety of attempts to provide a "natural" classification, or one that best reflects actual evolutionary relationships, of the family Anatidae have been made in recent years, with most of them being minor variations on a scheme first proposed by Jean Delacour and Ernst Mayr in 1945. In this landmark classification, emphasis …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Anserini (Swans And True Geese), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Mute Swan
Black Swan
Black-necked Swan
Trumpeter Swan
Whooper Swan
Whistling Swan
Bewick Swan
Coscoroba Swan
Swan Goose
Bean Goose
White-fronted Goose
Lesser White-fronted Goose
Graylag Goose
Bar-headed Goose
Snow Goose
Ross Goose
Emperor Goose
Hawaiian Goose
Canada Goose
Barnacle Goose
Brant
Red-breasted Goose

The swans and true geese are moderately to extremely large waterfowl, which in common with the whistling ducks have plumage patterns that are alike in both sexes and lack iridescent coloration, and they also possess reticulated scale patterns on the tarsal surfaces. Most of the 20 species are found in the cooler parts of the Northern …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Mergini (Sea Ducks), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Eider (Common Eider) ● King Eider ● Spectacled Eider ● Steller Eider ● Labrador Duck ● Harlequin Duck ● Long-tailed Duck (Oldsquaw) ● Black Scoter ● Surf Scoter ● White-winged Scoter ● Bufflehead ● BroBarrow Goldeneye ● Common Goldeneye ● Hooded Merganser ● Smew ● Brazilian Merganser ● Red-breasted Merganser ● Chinese Merganser ● Goosander (Common Merganser) ● Auckland Island Merganser

The sea duck tribe, which here includes the eiders, consists of 20 species that are all superb diving birds. They are found in fresh-water as well as marine habitats, and primarily have Northern Hemisphere distribution patterns. Except for the …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Stictonettini (Freckled Duck), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Freckled Duck
Even more than the Cape Barren goose, the freckled duck exhibits an assortment of anatomical traits that suggest affinities with the geese and swans, in spite of a fairly typical ducklike appearance and foraging behavior. Its unpatterned downy young, its remarkably primitive syringeal structure, and its reticulated tarsus all strongly argue for the position that this species is the sole survivor of a very ancient waterfowl lineage, with no near living relatives. A detailed study of its social behavior is greatly to be desired, for like the magpie goose, it provides an unequaled opportunity to gain insight into …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Tachyerini (Steamer Ducks), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Flying Steamer Duck
Magellanic Flightless Steamer Duck
Falkland Flightless Steamer Duck

The South American steamer ducks have at times been included with the shelducks, but differ enough from them in structure and behavior to be regarded as a separate but closely related tribe. There are three species very similar in appearance; two are essentially flightless. All are found off the coasts of southern South America and the Falkland Islands, where they feed on mollusks and other marine invertebrates. The males differ slightly from females in their plumage and vocalizations, but in both sexes iridescent coloration is totally lacking and only …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Aythyini (Pochards), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Pink-headed Duck ● Red-crested Pochard ● Southern Pochard ● Rosybill ● Canvasback ● Eurasian Pochard ● Redhead ● Ring-necked Duck ● Australasian White-eye ● Siberian White-eye (Baer Pochard) ● Ferruginous White-eye ● Madagascan White-eye ● Tufted Duck ● New Zealand Scaup ● Greater Scaup ● Lesser Scaup

This tribe of primarily fresh-water diving ducks contains 16 species that collectively may be called pochards. The tribe has a nearly worldwide distribution, but only a few of its species have ranges that extend beyond a single continent. In addition to 15 species that are very similar in body proportions and diving adaptations, …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Cairinini (Perching Ducks), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Spur-winged Goose
Muscovy Duck
White-winged Wood Duck
Comb Duck
Hartlaub Duck
Green Pygmy Goose
Cotton Pygmy Goose
African Pygmy Goose
Ringed Teal
North American Wood Duck
Mandarin Duck
Australian Wood Duck
Brazilian Teal

This group of 13 species of primarily perching waterfowl is a rather heterogeneous assemblage of birds that are not easily characterized. In addition to being generally perching and cavity-nesting, they also have fairly wide, rounded wings, elongated tails, and sometimes also relatively long legs. Many of the species exhibit a great deal of iridescent coloration in their plumage, even among females, and in a few species nearly …

Ducks, Geese, And Swans Of The World: Tribe Oxyurini (Stiff-Tailed Ducks), Paul A. Johnsgard

Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World by Paul A. Johnsgard

Black-headed Duck
Masked Duck
Ruddy Duck
White-headed Duck
Maccoa Duck
Argentine Blue-billed Duck
Australian Blue-billed Duck
Musk Duck

The stiff-tailed ducks are characterized by several unusual features in addition to their long, stiffened tail feathers that serve as underwater rudders. Among other adaptations are their very large feet, which are placed so far back on the body that it is difficult for these birds to walk on land. The body feathers are small, numerous, and have a grebe-like sheen, and the wings are so short that takeoff and flight is attained with difficulty. All of the species have relatively short …

Waterfowl Of North America: Index, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

English vernacular names of waterfowl indexed here are in general those used in this book for species or larger groupings. Vernacular names for subspecies are only indexed to those pages where they may be listed among the subspecies included in the species accounts. Pages that include the primary discussions of each species are indicated by boldface under the species' vernacular name and its scientific name. Species other than waterfowl are not indexed.

acuta, Anas, 257-267
[through]
Wood Duck, 13, 14, 16, 20, 24,28, 35, 161, 169-180, 480, 486, 490; map, 172

Waterfowl Of North America: Swans And True Geese, Tribe Anserini, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

The approximately twenty extant species of swans and true geese are, unlike the whistling ducks, primarily of temperate and arctic distribution, especially in the Northern Hemisphere. It is thus not surprising that continental North America may lay claim to at least nine breeding species, or nearly half.of the known total. Additionally, sufficient records of a tenth, the barnacle goose, are known as to warrant its inclusion in the book even though there is no indication that it nests in continental North America. Several additional Old World species of geese and swans have been reported one or more times in North …

Waterfowl Of North America: Surface-Feeding Ducks, Tribe Anatini, Paul A. Johnsgard

Waterfowl of North America, Revised Edition (2010) by Paul A. Johnsgard

The surface-feeding, dabbling, or similarly described ducks are a group of about thirty-six species of mostly freshwater ducks that occur throughout the world. Many of them are temperate or arctic-breeding species that nest on dry land near freshwater ponds, marshes, rivers, or similar rather shallow bodies of water. Associated with this breeding habitat are their adaptations for foraging by "tipping-up" rather than by diving for food, an ability to land and take off abruptly from small water areas or land, and a moderately good walking ability but reduced perching capabilities as compared with perching ducks. Also unlike perching ducks, iridescent …