The Anserinae are a subfamily in the waterfowl family Anatidae. It includes the swans and the 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 European geese Anser anser domesticus | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Anseriformes |
Family: | Anatidae |
Subfamily: | Anserinae Vigors, 1825 |
Genera | |
See text | |
Synonyms | |
Cygninae |
True geese (Tribe Anserini)
Unresolved
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:
Tribe Cereopseini
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: