NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Black-bellied Whistling Duck
Dendrocygna autumnalis (Linnaeus, 1758)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The black-bellied whistling duck (Dendrocygna autumnalis) or black-bellied tree duck, is a whistling duck that before 2000 bred mainly from the southernmost United States to south-central South America. It can be found year-round in much of the United States. It has been recorded in every eastern state and adjacent Canadian province. Since it is one of only two whistling duck species native to North America, it is occasionally just known as the "whistling duck" or "Mexican squealer" in the southern USA.
Wikipedia contributors, Black-bellied whistling duck; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T12:04:05.930658+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Dendrocygna autumnalis (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- Black-bellied Whistling Duck
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Dendrocygna
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderAnseriformes
- familyAnatidae Leach, 1820
- genusDendrocygna Swainson, 1837
- speciesDendrocygna autumnalis (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Dendrocygna. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| West Indian Whistling DuckDendrocygna arborea (Linnaeus, 1758) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Wandering Whistling DuckDendrocygna arcuata (Horsfield, 1824) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Fulvous Whistling DuckDendrocygna bicolor (Vieillot, 1816) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Plumed Whistling DuckDendrocygna eytoni (Eyton, 1838) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Spotted Whistling DuckDendrocygna guttata Schlegel, 1866 | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Lesser Whistling DuckDendrocygna javanica (Horsfield, 1821) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-faced Whistling DuckDendrocygna viduata (Linnaeus, 1766) | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Middle America
North America
South America
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=175044 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:34Q2Z. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.