Anas smithii

• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Habitat

Typically found in a lake at a mean distance from sea level of 1,266 meters (4,152 feet).[1]

Ecology: Behaviour This species is largely sedentary , but can be somewhat nomadic and dispersive within its southern African range8. There may also be some true seasonal north-south migrational movements through central South Africa (South African birds have been recovered in Namibia up to 1,650 km away)2, 8. Its movements are poorly understood7, 8, although migration appears to be between winter- and summer-rainfall areas7 and is dependent on water availability, whereas nomadic movements are believed to be responses to food availability7. In much of its range this species breeds throughout the year, although in some areas breeding is more seasonal (for example the breeding peak for birds in the south-west of Cape Province , South Africa is August-December)2. The species breeds in single pairs or loose groups, but may crowd together where suitable nesting sites are scarce1, 6. Outside the breeding season the species is usually found in small groups, or very rarely in numbers up to 6002, 6. Adult birds undergo a period of moulting after breeding during which they are flightless for around 30 days1; during this time they seek the refuge of large open waters1, 8 rich in natural foods1. It is both a diurnal and nocturnal feeder1. Habitat This species shows a preference for shallow freshwater and brackish habitats , such as lakes , marshes and temporary floodwaters1, 2, 4. It will feed in fertile waters rich in planktonic organisms such as sewage disposal ponds , and will also tolerate highly alkaline lakes (pH 10), tidal estuaries, saline lagoons and salt-pans1, 2, 4, 7, 8. It generally avoids deep lakes, fast-flowing rivers , farm dams and reservoirs except as temporary refuges1, 2, 4, 6. Diet This species is omnivorous , commonly consuming the stems and seeds of water plants , snails, insects, molluscs , crustaceans and amphibian larvae1. Animal matter makes up a significantly larger proportion of its diet than does plant matter1. Breeding site The preferred nesting sites of this species are close to highly fertile shallow-water areas that have abundant sources of invertebrate food2, 4. The nest itself is a shallow scrape in earth, often with sides and a canopy built up from vegetation, and it is generally positioned near the waters edge2, 4, 6.

[2].

List of Habitats:

•     4     Grassland   
  
•     4.6     Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical Seasonally Wet/Flooded   
  
•     5     Wetlands (inland)   
  
•     5.8     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     5.14     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Saline, Brackish or Alkaline Lakes   
  
•     9     Marine Neritic   
  
•     9.10     Marine Neritic - Estuaries   
  
•     13     Marine Coastal/Supratidal   
  
•     13.4     Marine Coastal/Supratidal - Coastal Brackish/Saline Lagoons/Marine Lakes   
  
•     15     Artificial/Aquatic & Marine   
  
•     15.4     Artificial/Aquatic - Salt Exploitation Sites   
  
•     15.6     Artificial/Aquatic - Wastewater Treatment Areas   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Synonyms

Anas smithi • Anas smithi (Hartert • Anas smithi (Hartert, 1891) • Anas smithii (Hartert, 1891)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 23-Jan-2007

Similar Species

Members of the genus Anas

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 91 species and subspecies in this genus:

A. acuta (American Pintail) · A. acuta acuta (Northern Pintail) · A. acuta drygalskii (Northern Pintail) · A. acuta eatoni (Northern Pintail) · A. americana (American Wigeon / Baldpate) · A. andium (Andean Teal) · A. aucklandica (Campbell Island Flightless Teal) · A. aucklandica aucklandica (New Zealand Brown Teal) · A. aucklandica nesiotis (Campbell Island Flightless Teal) · A. bahamensis (White-Cheeked Pintail) · A. bahamensis bahamensis (White-Cheeked Pintail) · A. bahamensis galapagensis (Galapagos Pintail) · A. bernieri (Madagascar Teal) · A. capensis (African Cape Teal) · A. carolinensis (Green-Winged Teal) · A. castanea (Chestnut-Breasted Teal) · A. chlorotis (Flightless Teal) · A. clypeata (Red-Breasted Shoveler) · A. crecca (Green-Winged Teal) · A. crecca carolinensis (Green-Winged Teal) · A. crecca crecca (Green-Winged Teal) · A. crecca nimia (Aleutian Green-Winged Teal) · A. cyanoptera (South American Teal) · A. cyanoptera cyanoptera (Cinnamon Teal) · A. cyanoptera septentrionalium (Cinnamon Teal) · A. diazi (New Mexican Duck) · A. diazi novimexicana (New Mexican Duck) · A. discors (Blue Winged Teal) · A. discors discors (Blue-Winged Teal) · A. discors orphna (Blue-Winged Teal) · A. drygalskii (Crozet Pintail) · A. eatoni (Kerguelen Pintail) · A. erythrorhyncha (Red-Billed Pintail) · A. falcata (Bronze-Capped Teal) · A. flavirostris (Yellow-Billed Teal) · A. flavirostris flavirostris (Speckled/chilean Teal) · A. formosa (Spectacled Teal) · A. formosa georgi (Spectacled Teal) · A. formosus (Spectacled Teal) · A. fulcigula (Mottled Duck) · A. fulvigula (Summer Black Duck) · A. fulvigula fulvigula (Mottled Duck) · A. fulvigula maculosa (Mottled Duck) · A. georgica (Yellow-Billed Pintail) · A. georgica georgica (Yellow-Billed Pintail) · A. gibberifrons (Sunda Teal) · A. gibberifrons gibberifrons (Sunda Teal) · A. gracilis (Grey Teal) · A. hottentota (Hottentot Teal) · A. laysanensis (Laysan Teal) · A. leucophrys (Ringed Teal) · A. luzonica (Philippine Duck) · A. marecula (Amsterdam Duck) · A. melleri (Meller's Duck) · A. nesiotis (Campbell Island Teal) · A. oustaleti (Anjouan Island Sparrow Hawk) · A. penelope (European Widgeon) · A. platalea (Argentine Shoveller) · A. platyrhynchos (Duck) · A. platyrhynchos conboschas (Mallard) · A. platyrhynchos diazi (Mallard) · A. platyrhynchos platyrhynchos (Mallard) · A. poecilorhyncha (Western Spot-Billed Duck) · A. poecilorhyncha poecilorhyncha (Indian Spot-Billed Duck) · A. puna (Puna Teal) · A. punctata (Pacific Black Duck) · A. querquedula (Garganey Teal) · A. rhynchotis (Australasian Shoveler) · A. rhynchotis rhynchotis (Australasian Shoveler) · A. rubripes (North American Black Duck) · A. sibilatrix (Southern Chiloe Wigeon) · A. smithii (Cape Shoveller) · A. sparsa (African Black Duck) · A. sparsa sparsa (African Black Duck) · A. specularioides (Crested Duck) · A. specularioides specularioides (Crested Duck) · A. specularis (Bronze-Winged Duck) · A. strepera (Common Gadwall) · A. strepera strepera (Gadwall) · A. superciliosa (Black Duck) · A. superciliosa pelewensis (Gray Duck) · A. superciliosa superciliosa (Gray Duck) · A. theodori (Mauritian Duck) · A. undulata (African Yellow-Billed Duck) · A. undulata undulata (African Yellow-Billed Duck) · A. versicolor (Versicolor Teal) · A. versicolor versicolor (Versicolor Teal) · A. waigiuensis (Salvadori's Duck) · A. waigivensis (Salvadori's Duck) · A. wyvilliana (Koloa Piwai) · A. zonorhyncha (Eastern Spot-Billed Duck)

More Info

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• Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books

Further Reading

• Check-list of birds of the world. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1931-1987. url p. 479.
• Directory of Wetlands of International Importance. IUCN url p. 541, p. 758.

Notes

Contributors

• BirdLife International 2004. Anas smithii. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 21 October 2006.
• BirdLife International 2004. In IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNRedList.org. Downloaded July 18, 2008.
• BirdLife International 2009. Anas smithii. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 30January2012.
• Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed March 19, 2012.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 05, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from provider.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.
• Peterson, Alan P. Zoological Nomenclature Resource. Accessed June 19, 2009.
• Ruggiero M., Gordon D., Bailly N., Kirk P., Nicolson D. (2011). The Catalogue of Life Taxonomic Classification, Edition 2, Part A. In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2011 Annual Checklist (Bisby F.A., Roskov Y.R., Orrell T.M., Nicolson D., Paglinawan L.E., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Ouvrard D., eds). DVD; Species 2000: Reading, UK.

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 11706
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-553919
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13809541
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 553919
• IUCN ID: 190939
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 133179

Footnotes

1. Standard Deviation = 479.740 based on 4,909 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
2. BirdLife International 2009. Anas smithii. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 30 January 2012. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.