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Coscoroba swan

Animals CorvidaeCotinga

Coscoroba Swan (Coscoroba coscoroba)
The first three photos were taken at Torres del Paine, Chile while the other photos were taken at Taim, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

 


The Coscoroba swan is a taxonomic conundrum. It is swanlike overall, but its honking voice and gooselike head make it somewhat indistinguishable. Its bill looks like a duck and it is the only swan with offspring that look like tree ducks.

Coscoroba Swan, Coscoroba coscoroba, also of South America
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Kingdom: Animalia ...

The Coscoroba Swan (Coscoroba coscoroba) from South America, the only species of its genus, is apparently not a true swan. Its phylogenetic position is not fully resolved; it is in some aspects more similar to geese and shelducks.
Role in culture ...

Either these or - more probably - the goose-like Coscoroba Swan is the closest living relative of the true geese.

There are six to seven species of swan in the genus Cygnus; in addition there is another species known as the Coscoroba Swan, although this species is no longer considered related to the true swans.

Quite unsual for birds, swans have "teeth" - jagged parts of their bill that are used for catching and eating fish. In spite of this they are mainly plant eaters. The Coscoroba Swan is not a true swan.

See also: Swan, Geese, Goose, Duck, Flamingo

Animals CorvidaeCotinga

 
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