NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Brazilian Merganser
Mergus octosetaceus Vieillot, 1817
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 Brazilian merganser (Mergus octosetaceus) is a South American diving duck in the Mergus genus.
It is one of the most threatened waterfowl species in the world, with possibly fewer than 250 birds in the wild and a small number kept in captivity in Brazil and Czechia. It has a long, sharp-edged beak with a great number of tooth-like edges.
Wikipedia contributors, Brazilian merganser; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:37:02.932706+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mergus octosetaceus Vieillot, 1817
- Name authority
- Vieillot, 1817
- Common name
- Brazilian Merganser
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Mergus
- 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
- genusMergus Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesMergus octosetaceus Vieillot, 1817
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mergus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Common MerganserMergus merganser Linnaeus, 1758 | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Auckland Island MerganserMergus australis Hombron & Jacquinot, 1841 | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
| Red-breasted MerganserMergus serrator Linnaeus, 1758 | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Scaly-sided MerganserMergus squamatus Gould, 1864 | AnatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
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=175193 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:3ZTRP. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.