Ducks, Geese and Swans (Anatidae)

Hardhead (Aythya australis) - HBW 1, p. 616

French: Fuligule austral German: Tasmanmoorente Spanish: Porrón Australiano
Other common names: Australian Hardhead/Pochard/White-eye, White-eyed Duck, Brownhead, Copperhead

Taxonomy: Nyroca australis Eyton, 1838, Australia = New South Wales.
Considered by some to form superspecies with A. baeri, A. nyroca and A. innotata. Hybridization with Anas platyrhynchos recorded in captivity. Breeding birds collected in Banks Is, Vanuatu, were assigned separate subspecies extima, though it has been suggested that this population represented a temporary colonization by nomadic Australian birds. Monotypic.

Distribution: SW and E Australia; isolated population of Banks Is, Vanuatu, may be result of brief colonization by birds of Australian origin.