Comb Duck
Photo: BS Thurner Hof · CC BY-SA 3.0

Ducks, Swans, and Geese

Comb Duck

Sarkidiornis sylvicola

LCLeast Concern
Family
Ducks, Swans, and Geese (Anatidae)
Order
Anseriformes

Overview

The comb duck or American comb duck (Sarkidiornis sylvicola), is an unusual duck found in tropical wetlands in continental South America south to the Paraguay River region in eastern Paraguay, southeastern Brazil and extreme northeastern Argentina, and as a vagrant on Trinidad.
Most taxonomic authorities split this species and the knob-billed duck from each other. The comb duck is generally smaller in size when compared to the knob-billed duck, and flanks are darker (black in males, medium grey in females).

Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Range and habitat

Tropical South America (east of the Andes) to northern Argentina.

Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.

Sources and further reading

Last updated September 29, 2026.