Description

The Genus Alopochen only contains one living species, the Egyptian Goose Alopochen Aegyptiacus.  Three extinct species are also known, with two surviving at least into the 1690s. The Egyptian Goose mainly lives on the mainland of Africa, south of the Sahara, with a population in the Nile valley, while the extinct species were found on Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands (Réunion, Mauritius and Rodrigues).

The name comes from the Greek for 'fox goose' referring to the colour of the feathers (although the Greek isn’t entirely correct, the error is only a letter or two).

The genus is part of the sub-family Tadorniae, which it shares with the shelducks (genus Tadorna). Despite the English name of the one surviving species, the Alopochen are actually ducks, but they look larger in flight.

The British population, which is concentrated in East Anglia, is descended from escaped ornamental birds. 

Classification
Order: Anseriformes (Geese, swans, ducks)
Family: Anatidae (Swans, Geese, Ducks)
Genus: Alopochen

Number of Species: 1 (as of March 2015)

British Members of the Genus

Naturalized  Breeders
Egyptian Goose Alopochen Aegyptiacus