This is a list of Anseriformes species by global population. While numbers are estimates, they have been made by the experts in their fields.
Anseriformes
Anseriformes is an order (biology), order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest f ...
(Anser being Latin for ''"goose"'') is the taxonomic order to which the
duck
Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...
s,
geese
A goose (: geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (black geese). Some members of the Tadorninae subfamily (e.g., Egyp ...
,
swan
Swans are birds of the genus ''Cygnus'' within the family Anatidae. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe (biology) ...
s, and
screamer
The screamers are three South American bird species placed in Family (biology), family Anhimidae. They were thought to be related to the Galliformes because of similar beak, bills, but are more closely related to the family Anatidae, i.e. ducks ...
s belong.
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
has assessed 166 species; 89 (54% of total species) have had their population estimated. A variety of methods are used for counting waterfowl. For example, in North America, national and sub-national agencies use planes and helicopters to make
aerial transects of breeding populations, and extrapolate these counts over the species' known ranges. Methodologies are continuously being refined; thus estimates can be expected to become more accurate over time. Forecasts can be made by studying habitat condition trends and by interviewing local experts.
For more information on how these estimates were ascertained, see Wikipedia's articles on
population biology
The term population biology has been used with different meanings.
In 1971, Edward O. Wilson ''et al''. used the term in the sense of applying mathematical models to population genetics, community ecology, and population dynamics. Alan Hasting ...
and
population ecology
Population ecology is a sub-field of ecology that deals with the dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the environment (biophysical), environment, such as birth rate, birth and death rates, and by immigration an ...
.
The first bird in this list, the
crested shelduck
The crested shelduck (''Tadorna cristata''), or Korean crested shelduck, is a species of bird in the family Anatidae. It is critically endangered. The male crested shelduck has a greenish-black crown, breast, primaries, and tail, while the rest o ...
, retains a status of
Critically Endangered
An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...
on the
IUCN Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...
but may in fact be extinct. The last confirmed reporting was in 1964 near
Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...
.
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
claimed a sighting in March 1971, but this record is highly suspect. Unconfirmed reports do, however, periodically roll in from
Northeast China
Northeast China () is a geographical region of China, consisting officially of three provinces Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. The heartland of the region is the Northeast China Plain, the largest plain in China with an area of over . The regi ...
, giving scientists hope that the last individual has not yet died.
To be assessed as Critically Endangered a species must have experienced a decline of at least 80% in the past ten years or three generations, or be projected to decline that much in the future ten years or three generations.
As some species below are rapidly approaching their
minimum viable population
Minimum viable population (MVP) is a lower bound on the population of a species, such that it can survive in the wild. This term is commonly used in the fields of biology, ecology, and conservation biology. MVP refers to the smallest possible si ...
(MVP), the future may see their removal from the list and addition to the preceding paragraph.
Extinct species:
*
Rﾃｩunion shelduck, the last of which had been hunted by 1710;
*
Mauritian shelduck, which was plentiful in 1681 and extinct in 1698;
*
Amsterdam duck
The Amsterdam wigeon (''Mareca marecula'', formerly ''Anas marecula''), also known as the Amsterdam Island duck or Amsterdam duck, is an extinct species of anatid waterfowl, endemic to ﾃ四e Amsterdam (Amsterdam Island), the French Southern Terri ...
, reported to be the favourite dish of
ﾃ四e Amsterdam
(), also known as Amsterdam Island or New Amsterdam (), is an island of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the southern Indian Ocean that together with neighbouring ﾃ四e Saint-Paul to the south forms one of the five districts of the t ...
's five resident sealers until 1793;
*
Mauritian duck
The Mascarene teal (''Anas theodori''), also known as Sauzier's teal and Mauritian duck, is an extinct dabbling duck that formerly occurred on the islands of Mauritius and Rﾃｩunion.
Taxonomy
The reports of Bernardin and (1710) Antoﾃｭne Bouche ...
, which was found in "great numbers" in 1681 and last reported in 1696;
*
Mariana mallard
The Mariana mallard or Oustalet's duck (''Anas oustaleti'') is an extinct species of duck of the genus ''Anas'' that was endemic to the Mariana Islands. Its taxonomic status is debated, and it has variously been treated as a full species, a subsp ...
, a pair of which would not breed at
SeaWorld
SeaWorld is an American theme park chain with headquarters in Orlando, Florida. It is a proprietor of marine mammal parks, oceanariums, animal theme parks, and rehabilitation centers owned by United Parks & Resorts. The parks host shows st ...
and which has not been encountered since the death of the last individual there in 1981;
*
Finsch's duck
Finsch's duck (''Chenonetta finschi'') () is an extinct species of large terrestrial duck that was endemic to New Zealand. The species was possibly once the most common duck in New Zealand, a supposition based on the frequency of its fossils in ...
, once the most abundant waterfowl species in New Zealand;
*
Labrador duck
The Labrador duck (''Camptorhynchus labradorius'') is an extinct North American duck species. It has the distinction of being the first known endemic North American bird species to become extinct after the Columbian Exchange, with the last report ...
, which has not been seen in northeast North America since 1875;
*
Auckland merganser, which was last recorded in 1902.
Species by global population
See also
*
Lists of birds by population
This is a list of bird species by global population, divided by bird classification. While numbers are estimates, they have been made by the experts in their fields. For more information on how these estimates were ascertained, see Wikipedia's art ...
*
Lists of organisms by population
This is a collection of lists of organisms by their population. While most of the numbers are estimates, they have been made by the experts in their fields. Species population is a science falling under the purview of population ecology and bi ...
*
List of duck breeds
This is a list of the breeds of domestic duck which have official recognition at national or international level.
Most breeds of duck derive from the wild mallard, ''Anas platyrhynchos'', while a small minority are descendants of the Muscovy duc ...
References
{{Birds by population
Birds
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...
Anseriformes
Anseriformes is an order (biology), order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest f ...