LC
Hardhead Aythya australis



Taxonomy

Taxonomic source(s)
Christidis, L. and Boles, W.E. 2008. Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Australia.
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.
Turbott, E.G. 1990. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand. Ornithological Society of New Zealand, Wellington.

IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable
- - -

Red List history
Year Category Criteria
2024 Least Concern
2016 Least Concern
2012 Least Concern
2009 Least Concern
2008 Least Concern
2004 Least Concern
2000 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1994 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988 Lower Risk/Least Concern
Species attributes

Migratory status not a migrant Forest dependency does not normally occur in forest
Land-mass type Average mass -
Range

Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) 10,100,000 km2
Severely fragmented? no -
Population
Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
Population size 66700-667000 mature individuals poor estimated 2023
Population trend stable - suspected -
Generation length 5.26 years - - -

Population justification: The global population size is estimated at 100,001-1,001,000 individuals (Wetlands International 2023), which equates to 66,700-667,000 mature individuals. The overall population trend is considered to be fluctuating over three generations (15.78 years) (Wetlands International 2023).

Trend justification:   .


Country/territory distribution
Country/Territory Presence Origin Resident Breeding visitor Non-breeding visitor Passage migrant
Australia extant native yes
Indonesia extant vagrant yes
New Caledonia (to France) extant vagrant yes
New Zealand extinct vagrant yes
Papua New Guinea extant vagrant yes
Solomon Islands extant vagrant yes
Timor-Leste extant vagrant yes
Vanuatu extant vagrant yes

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Country/Territory IBA Name
Australia Arcoona Lakes
Australia Fortescue Marshes
Australia Lake Argyle
Australia Lake Gregory/Paraku
Australia Lake Sylvester System
Australia Mandora Marsh and Anna Plains
Australia Paroo Floodplain and Currawinya
Australia Strzelecki Desert Lakes

Habitats & altitude
Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Marine Coastal/Supratidal Coastal Brackish/Saline Lagoons/Marine Lakes suitable resident
Marine Coastal/Supratidal Coastal Freshwater Lakes suitable resident
Marine Neritic Macroalgal/Kelp suitable resident
Marine Neritic Seagrass (Submerged) suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Sandy suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Sandy-Mud suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) major resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) major resident
Altitude 0 - 1150 m Occasional altitudinal limits  

Utilisation
Purpose Scale
Pets/display animals, horticulture international

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Hardhead Aythya australis. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/hardhead-aythya-australis on 18/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 18/12/2024.