CreatureData

Torrent duck

Merganetta armata Gould, 1842

LCLeast Concernwaterfowl

The torrent duck (Merganetta armata) is a species in the family Anatidae, order Anseriformes. Recorded adults weigh 328.5 g to 465 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Torrent duck (Merganetta armata)
Photo: Erwinh · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the torrent duck

Weight
328.5 g – 465 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
riverinesrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
3.4 – 3.5src for Young per litter or clutch
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Aquaticsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the torrent duck live?

Not recorded

What is the torrent duck?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The torrent duck (Merganetta armata) is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is the only member of the genus Merganetta. It is placed in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae after the "perching duck" assemblage to which it was formerly assigned was dissolved because it turned out to be paraphyletic.

This 43–46-centimetre (17–18 in) long species is a resident breeder in the Andes of South America, nesting in small waterside caves and other sheltered spots. Like the blue duck, it holds territories on fast-flowing mountain rivers, usually above 1,500 metres (4,900 ft). It is a powerful swimmer and diver even in white water but is reluctant to fly more than short distances. It is not particularly wary when located.

Male torrent ducks have a striking black and white head and neck pattern and a red bill. In-flight, they show dark wings with green speculum. Females of all subspecies are smaller than the drakes; they have orange underparts and throat, with the head and upperparts grey and a yellower bill. Juveniles are pale grey above and whitish below.

The male's call is a shrill whistle, while the female's is a throatier whistle.

This is a declining species due to competition for its invertebrate food from introduced trout, pollution, forest destruction, and damming of mountain rivers for hydroelectric schemes. The Chilean population seems relatively stable, while the more northern ones are more seriously affected. However, the overall population is still large enough to warrant classification as a Species of Least Concern in the IUCN Redlist.

From the Wikipedia article “Torrent duck” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Torrent_duck&oldid=1379734835), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the torrent duck endangered?

The torrent duck is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the torrent duck classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderAnseriformes
  5. familyAnatidae
  6. genusMerganetta
  7. SpeciesMerganetta armata Gould, 1842
Other names and names in other languages (40)
  • بط السيلArabic
  • بط التيارArabic
  • Андска шпореста патицаBulgarian
  • ànec torrenterCatalan
  • kachna bystřinnáCzech
  • hwyaden y cenllifWelsh
  • SkalleslugerandDanish
  • SturzbachenteGerman
  • TorentanasoEsperanto
  • torenta anasoEsperanto
  • Pato torrenteroSpanish
  • Pato cortacorrientesSpanish
  • Pato de los TorrentesSpanish
  • Pato de torrenteSpanish
  • andi kosepartEstonian
  • koskisorsaFinnish
  • Merganette des torrentsFrench
  • ברווז נהרותHebrew
  • patka potočarkaCroatian
  • zuhatagi réceHungarian
  • Anatra di torrenteItalian
  • ヤマガモJapanese
  • andinė antisLithuanian
  • BargbeekaanteLow German
  • BergbeekeendDutch
  • strømandNorwegian
  • Koskisorzuolo
  • zbrojówkaPolish
  • pato-das-torrentesPortuguese
  • Mayu patuQuechua
  • Андская уткаRussian
  • Ручьевая уткаRussian
  • potápačka riavováSlovak
  • Američka patka iz brzakaSerbian
  • forsandSwedish
  • Sel ördeğiTurkish
  • Çağlayan ÖrdeğiTurkish
  • качка андійськаUkrainian
  • 湍鴨Chinese
  • 湍鸭Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the torrent duck

Other species in the same family Anatidae.

LC, Least Concern
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)

Mallard

Anas platyrhynchos

Anatidae

LC, Least Concern
Mute swan (Cygnus olor)

Mute swan

Cygnus olor

Anatidae

CompareTorrent duck vs MallardTorrent duck vs Greylag gooseTorrent duck vs Northern pintailTorrent duck vs Mute swan

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the torrent duck?

An adult torrent duck weighs 328.5 g – 465 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the torrent duck endangered?

The torrent duck is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the torrent duck?

The torrent duck (Merganetta armata) belongs to the family Anatidae in the order Anseriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Torrent duck (Merganetta armata). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/torrent-duck

MLA

“Torrent duck (Merganetta armata).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/torrent-duck.

BibTeX
@misc{torrent_duck_2026,
  title = {Torrent duck (Merganetta armata)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/torrent-duck},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}