Brazilian Merganser

This merganser is a dark, slender duck with a shiny dark-green hood with a long crest, which is usually shorter and more worn-looking in females. Upperparts are dark grey while the breast is light grey, getting paler toward the whitish belly, and a white wing patch is particularly noticeable in flight. It has a long thin jagged black bill with red feet and legs. Although females are smaller with a shorter bill and crest, both sexes are alike in color. The slender ducks range in size from 49 centimeters to 56 centimeters as an adult. Young Brazilian Mergansers are mainly black with white throat and breast.

The Brazilian Merganser is classified as Critically Endangered (CR), facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

The Brazilian Merganser, Mergus octosetaceus, is a duck in the typical merganser genus. It is one of the six most threatened waterfowl in the world with possibly fewer than 250 birds in the wild and none kept in captivity. The origin of its name is from its long, sharp-edged beak that has a great number of teeth-looking edges. More

Young Brazilian Mergansers are mainly black with white throat and breast. The Brazilian Mergansers are generally silent birds, but may make barking calls in certain situations. Four calls have been recorded. A harsh krack-krack acts as an alarm call emitted in flight. Males make a barking dog-like call, females make a harsh rrr-rrrr and the contact call ia a soft rak-rak-rak. Ducklings give a high pitched ik-ik-ik. More

sites, Brazilian Merganser pairs occupy permanent territories of eight to fourteen kilometer stretches of rivers. Tree cavities, rock crevices, or disused burrows predominantly made by armadillos are the ideal places for these mergansers to build their nests. It is thought the breeding season is during the austral winter, when rain is minimal and water levels are low, but it may vary geographically. More

The river habitat required by the Brazilian Merganser has suffered from staggering deforestation and permanent flooding from dams. The dwindling population of these fish-eating ducks is perhaps most numerous in Brazil's Serra de Canastra National Park, 500 miles northwest of San Paulo. Adding to the birds' plight, a series of forest fires devastated the national park and another area where the merganser was thought to have a stronghold. More

The Brazilian Merganser, Mergus octosetaceus, is considered critically endangered and one of the ten most threatened waterfowl worldwide (IUCN 2004, BirdLife International 2000). Originally, its distribution area comprised central-south Brazil and adjacent regions in Paraguay and Argentina. Currently, all confirmed populations are located in Brazil and information on most populations is almost non existent. More

Brazilian merganser on rock at edge of river Brazilian merganser on rock at edge of riverPrint factsheet Facts - Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Aves Order Anseriformes Family Anatidae Genus Mergus (1) Size Size: 49 – More

The Brazilian merganser is extremely sensitive to habitat loss and degradation, and has suffered badly from pollution, siltation and disturbance of its rivers, which has resulted largely from deforestation, logging, agricultural expansion, cattle ranching, human habitation, hotel construction and, in the Serra da Canastra area, diamond-mining (3) (4) (7). Dam-building has also flooded suitable habitat, especially in Brazil and Paraguay (4), and intensifying ecotourism activities, such as rafting, may become another threat in the future (3). More

The Brazilian Merganser (Mergus octosetaceus) is one of the most threatened waterfowl in the world and one of the most threatened birds in Americas. Its distribution is restricted to the center-south of Brazil, and parts of Paraguay and Argentina. The species inhabits clean rivers and streams, with rapids and still waters, bordered by forests and with fish abundance. Besides being naturally rare, it has been affected by several human activities that interfere directly or indirectly with its habitats. More

One of the most enigmatic of all ducks, the Brazilian merganser is also one of the most threatened birds in the world. Appearance Dark, medium-sized, slender duck with a distinctive long, shaggy crest and large broad tail, often held in cocked position. Head and neck dark glossy green, body grey-green with green and white barring on belly. White panel (speculum) in wing. Long thin serrated black bill. Red feet and legs. More

Brazilian Mergansers for conservation purposes, during a field visit to Brazil's Serra da Canastra National Park by members of an international working group on Brazilian Merganser conservation. Critically endangered Brazilian Mergansers are one of just six species of wildfowl classified as Critically Endangered on the World Conservation Union Red List. More

Brazilian Mergansers feed basically on small fish they capture during dives, although aquatic macroinvertebrates also contribute to their diet. Very often, before diving, they search for their prey swimming with just their heads submerged. Dives can last 15 to 20 seconds (Hughes et al. 2006), and even 30 seconds in deeper pools. We have observed them catching insects flying around their heads. In the Serra da Canastra region, the most common fish species which serve as their food are “lambaris” (Astyanax spp. More

The first ever Brazilian Mergansers have been caught and colour ringed during a highly successful WWT and Terra Brasilis trip to Serra da Canastra, Brazil. The crucial 10 day expedition has resulted in a superb 14 Brazilian Mergansers being marked, five of which have also been fitted with radio transmitters. This remarkable achievement will enable valuable information to be collected on their habitat use, movements and social interactions on the River Sao Francisco. More

specimens of the Brazilian Merganser during his travels (1818 and 1819) in Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, and So Paulo. Although these specimens (now in the Berlin Museum) are simply labelled "Minas," they were probably obtained early in 1819 when the travelers followed the Rio das Velhas down to the Rio S5o Francisco (Stresemann, in litt. April 22, 1952; see also Stresemann, 1935: 121; 1948; and 1954: 52). Burmeister (1856: 442) and Schliiter (cf. More

Family of Brazilian Mergansers in the Serra da Canastra National Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil More

The Brazilian Merganser is considered critically endangered worldwide. The current population of the species has been reduced to less than 250 individuals in the wild, according to BirdLife International (2008) (according to the profile of the species accessed in BirdLife, 12/2/2009). At the moment there is no population in captivity of this species. Threats The Brazilian Merganser is very sensitive to habitat changes. More

A Brazilian Merganser Recovery Team has been established with the aim of developing an action plan for its recovery18. There is a proposal to extend the boundaries of Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park to incorporate the newly discovered population in the rio das Pedras18. Conservation measures proposed Assess the status of the Tibagi and Novo populations10. Continue to monitor the Serra da Canastra population. Develop and implement a fieldwork strategy using satellite images. More

Brazilian Merganser is rather drab by merganser standards but it does possess truly vibrant vermilion legs. More

Brazilian Merganser, Brazil, Canastra November 2004 © Chris Lodge Critically endangered www.birdingart. More

Mike managed to observe several Brazilian Mergansers in the wild on a nearby river. (See Mike's photo above) In 2003, Brazilian authorities, researchers and national and international NGOs finalized an Action Plan to save the Brazilian Merganser. The Brazilian Merganser Recovery Team was given "working group status" by the government. Although not yet approved as part of the Action Plan, discussions have recently focused on the need for a Brazilian-based survival breeding program. More