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.

Systematics

Swans (Tribe Cygnini)^[1]

• Genus Cygnus – true swans: The black-and-yellow-billed swans are sometimes separated in the genus Olor.
• Genus †Afrocygnus (Miocene of North Africa)
• Genus †Annakacygna – short-winged swans (Miocene of Japan)
• Genus †Megalodytes (Miocene of Japan and California)

True geese (Tribe Anserini)

• 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:

Tribe Cereopseini

• 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