Common Pochard vs Laysan Duck

Aythya ferina compared with Anas laysanensis

Key Differences

• Common Pochard is Near Threatened while Laysan Duck is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Pochard	Laysan Duck
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order same	Anseriformes (Anseriformes)	Anseriformes (Anseriformes)
Family same	Anatidae	Anatidae
Genus	Aythya	Anas
Species	Aythya ferina	Anas laysanensis

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Pochard and Laysan Duck share a common ancestor at the Family level: Anatidae.

Conservation Status

Common Pochard

NT — Near Threatened

Laysan Duck

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Pochard	Laysan Duck
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Pochard

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (8 countries), and North America (United States). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Laysan Duck

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, France, Netherlands, Norway, and United Kingdom. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Common Pochard

Common Pochard (Aythya ferina) is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List. Close to qualifying as threatened, with populations that may become vulnerable without conservation action.

Laysan Duck

Laysan Duck (Anas laysanensis) is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List. Facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild due to severe population decline and habitat loss.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom