Bradley C. Livezey
Section of Birds
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Phone: 412.622.5591, email: livezeyb@CarnegieMNH.org

The ducks, geese, and swans are among the most familiar of birds, and the group is of particular importance economically, aesthetically, and for sport hunting. Beginning with a genus-level analysis of the evolutionary relationships of modern waterfowl in 1986, (Auk 103:737–754), I undertook a series of detailed phylogenetic analyses of waterfowl, each based on computer-implemented cladistic syntheses of comparative anatomy, including the steamer-ducks (Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 14:445–450; Condor 90:773–781; Systematic Zoology 35:458–469), dabbling ducks (Auk 108:471–508), seaducks (Condor 97:233–255), stiff-tailed ducks (Wilson Bulletin 107:214–234), whistling ducks (Annals of Carnegie Museum 64:65–97), shelducks (Annals of Carnegie Museum 65:27–88; Ibis 139:51–66), pochards (Auk 113:74–93), geese and swans (Systematic Biology 45:15–50), and the basal lineages of the Order Anseriformes (Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 121:361–428). Each study presents a reconstruction of the phylogenetic relationships among members, as well as examinations of evolutionary trends in characteristics such as body mass, egg size, and preferred nest site.

These reconstructions permit the examination of any number of evolutionary patterns and processes, and the trees can be used to compare the “phylogenetic signal” inferred from other clues to relationships such as DNA sequences and behavioral characteristics. Finally, the proposed tree can be employed to derive an evolutionarily meaningful taxonomic classification of this important group; practical applications of the classification include providing a biologically-based organizational framework for field guides (e.g., see Madge and Burn [1988] Waterfowl: An Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese and Swans of the World. Houghton Mifflin, as well as Kear [2005] Ducks, Geese and Swans. Oxford Univ. Press).