Odontophoridae

Northern bobwhite Colinus virginianus, copyright Tim.

Belongs within: Phasiani.

The Odontophoridae, New World quails, are a group of smaller gamebirds found in North and South America characterised by lacking spurs on the legs and possessing a single serration or tooth on the cutting edge of the upper bill.

<==Odontophoridae [Callipeplinae, Odontophorinae, Ortyginae] JT12
    |--Cyrtonyx JT12
    |    |--C. montezumae JT12
    |    |    |--C. m. montezumae L81
    |    |    |--C. m. mearnsi L81
    |    |    `--C. m. merriami USDI77
    |    `--C. ocellatus JT12
    `--+--Oreortyx pictus (Douglas 1829) JT12, CC10 [=Ortyx picta CC10, Oregon pictus CC10, Oreortyx picta CC10]
       |    |--O. p. pictus L81
       |    |--O. p. confinis RN72
       |    |--O. p. palmeri L81
       |    `--O. p. russelli RN72
       `--+--Callipepla Wagler 1832 JT12, B94 [incl. Lophortyx Bonaparte 1838 CC10]
          |    |--C. squamata BKB15 [incl. *C. strenua CC10]
          |    |    |--C. s. squamata L81
          |    |    |--C. s. castanogastris L81
          |    |    `--C. s. pallida L81
          |    `--+--C. douglasii BKB15 [=Lophortyx douglasii RN72]
          |       |    |--C. d. douglasii RN72
          |       |    `--‘Lophortyx’ d. bensoni RN72
          |       `--+--C. californica (Shaw in Shaw & Nodder 1798) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
          |          |    |--C. c. californica CC10
          |          |    |--C. c. brunnescens (Ridgway 1884) [=Lophortyx californica brunnescens] CC10
          |          |    |--‘Lophortyx’ c. catalinensis L81
          |          |    `--‘Lophortyx’ c. plumbeus L81
          |          `--C. gambelii BKB15 [=Lophortyx gambelii MW04]
          `--Colinus Goldfuss 1820 JT12, B94 [incl. Ortyx Stephens 1819 B94]
               |--C. cristatus JT12
               |    |--C. c. cristatus PP62
               |    |--C. c. parvicristatus (Gould 1843) [=Ortyx parvicristatus] PP62
               |    `--C. c. sonnini PP62
               |--C. leucopogon JT12
               |--C. nigrogularis JT12
               `--C. virginianus (Linnaeus 1758) [=Tetrao virginianus, Ortyx virginanus (l. c.), O. virginiana] CC10
                    |--C. v. virginianus CC10
                    |--C. v. cubanensis L81
                    |--C. v. floridanus L81
                    |--C. v. ridgwayi L81
                    |--C. v. taylori Lincoln 1915 CC10
                    `--C. v. texanus L81

Odontophoridae incertae sedis:
  Odontophorus Vieillot 1816 B94
    |--O. atrifrons JT12
    |--O. balliviani JT12
    |--O. capueira JT12
    |--O. columbianus JT12
    |--O. dialeucos JT12
    |--O. erythrops JT12
    |--O. gujanensis JT12
    |    |--O. g. gujanensis S18
    |    `--O. g. marmoratus S18
    |--O. guttatus JT12
    |--O. hyperythrus JT12
    |--O. leucolaemus JT12
    |--O. melanonotus JT12
    |--O. melanotis JT12
    |--O. speciosus JT12
    |--O. stellatus JT12
    `--O. strophium JT12
  Philortyx fasciatus JT12
  Rhynchortyx cinctus JT12
  Dendrortyx JT12
    |--D. barbatus JT12
    |--D. leucophrys JT12
    `--D. macroura JT12
  Dactylortyx thoracicus JT12
  Nanortyx inexpectatus Weigel 1963 M09

Callipepla californica (Shaw in Shaw & Nodder 1798) BKB15, CC10 [=Tetrao californicus CC10, *Lophortyx californica CC10, Ortyx californica CC10, O. californicus CC10]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[M09] Mayr, G. 2009. Paleogene Fossil Birds. Springer.

[MW04] Mayr, G., & I. Weidig. 2004. The Early Eocene bird Gallinuloides wyomingensis—a stem group representative of Galliformes. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 49 (2): 211–217.

[PP62] Phelps, W. H., & W. H. Phelps, Jr. 1962. Two new subspecies of birds from Venezuela, the rufous phase of Pauxi pauxi, and other notes. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 75: 199–204.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds.) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. Blandford Press: London.

[S18] Stone, W. 1918. Birds of the Panama Canal Zone, with special reference to a collection made by Mr. Lindsey L. Jewel. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 70: 239–280.

[USDI77] USDI (United States Department of the Interior). 1977. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants—republication of list of species. Federal Register 42: 36420–36431.

Mergini

Male (facing left) and female red-breasted mergansers Mergus serrator, copyright Mykola Swarnyk.

Belongs within: Anatinae.

The Mergini are a group of ducks primarily found in marine habitats. They are mostly found in temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere with the exception of the Brazilian merganser Mergus octosetaceus and the recently extinct New Zealand merganser M. australis. The mergansers of the genus Mergus have long, slender bills with a hooked tip and serrated edges, adapted for catching fish. The eiders of the genera Polysticta and Somateria, sometimes treated as a distinct tribe Somateriini, are found around the Arctic Ocean and are known for the dense down (eiderdown) they use for lining their nests.

<==Mergini [Merganserinae, Mergidia, Merginae]
    |  i. s.: Camptorhynchus labradorius CS77, CG99
    |--+--Clangula Leach 1819 BKB15, M02 [incl. Harelda Stephens 1824 B94; Clangulinae, Hareldinae]
    |  |    |--‘Harelda’ glacialis D56
    |  |    `--C. hyemalis (Linnaeus 1758) [=Anas hyemalis] CS77
    |  `--+--+--Histrionicus histrionicus (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 (see below for synonymy)
    |     |  `--Thambetochenini PJ02
    |     |       |--Chelychelynechen quassus PJ02
    |     |       |--Ptaiochen pau SC99
    |     |       `--Thambetochen BKB15
    |     |            |--T. chauliodous BKB15
    |     |            `--T. xanion SC99
    |     `--Somateriini [Somateriinae] CS77
    |          |--Polysticta Eyton 1836 BKB15, B94 [incl. Macropodus Nuttall 1834 B94]
    |          |    `--P. stelleri (Pallas 1769) [=Anas stelleri] CS77
    |          `--Somateria Leach 1819 BKB15, M02
    |               |  i. s.: S. stelleri RN72
    |               |--S. fischeri (Brandt 1847) BKB15, CS77 [=Fuligula fischeri CS77]
    |               `--+--S. mollissima (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 (see below for synonymy)
    |                  |    |--S. m. mollissima CS77
    |                  |    |--S. m. borealis (Brehm 1824) CS77
    |                  |    |--S. m. dresseri Sharpe 1871 CS77
    |                  |    |--S. m. faeroeensis Brehm 1831 CS77
    |                  |    |--S. m. sedentaria Snyder 1941 CS77
    |                  |    `--S. m. v-nigrum Bonaparte 1855 CS77
    |                  `--S. spectabilis (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas spectabilis CS77]
    `--+--Melanitta Boie 1822 BKB15, M02 [incl. Oidemia Flemming 1822 B94; Melanittinae, Oidemiinae]
       |    |--M. nigra (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 [=Anas nigra M02]
       |    |    |--M. n. nigra CS77
       |    |    `--M. n. americana (Swainson 1832) CS77
       |    `--+--M. fusca (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas fusca CS77, Oedemia fusca J63]
       |       |    |--M. f. fusca CS77
       |       |    |--M. f. deglandi (Bonaparte 1850) CS77
       |       |    |--M. f. dixoni RN72
       |       |    `--M. f. stejnegeri (Ridgway 1887) CS77
       |       `--M. perspicillata (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas perspicillata CS77]
       `--+--Bucephala Baird 1858 BKB15, M02 [incl. Glaucionetta Stejneger 1885 B94; Glaucionettinae]
          |    |  i. s.: B. cereti Boeuf & Mourer-Chauviré 1992 M02
          |    |         B. ossivallis FP64
          |    |--B. albeola (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas albeola CS77]
          |    `--+--B. clangula (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 (see below for synonymy)
          |       |    |--B. c. clangula CS77
          |       |    `--B. c. americana (Bonaparte 1838) CS77
          |       `--B. islandica (Gmelin 1789) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas islandica CS77]
          `--+--Mergellus Selby 1840 BKB15, M02
             |    `--M. albellus (Linnaeus 1758) [=Mergus albellus] M02
             `--+--Lophodytes cucullatus BKB15
                `--Mergus Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
                     |  i. s.: M. australis Hombron & Jacquinot 1841 [=Merganser australis, *Promergus australis] CC10
                     |         M. connectens Jánossy 1972 M02
                     |         M. cucullatus Linnaeus 1758 CS77
                     |         M. minutus Linnaeus 1758 L58
                     |         M. octosetaceus JT12
                     |--M. serrator Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, M02 (see below for synonymy)
                     `--+--M. merganser Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, M02
                        |    |--M. m. merganser CS77
                        |    |--M. m. americanus Cassin 1852 CS77
                        |    `--M. m. comatus (Salvadori 1895) CS77
                        `--M. squamatus Gould 1864 BKB15, I92

Bucephala clangula (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 [=Anas clangula M02, Glaucionetta clangula D56; incl. B. angustipes Jánossy 1965 M02]

Histrionicus histrionicus (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas histrionica CS77; incl. H. histrionicus pacificus Brooks 1915 CS77]

Mergus Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, CC10 [=Merganser Brisson 1760 CC10; incl. Promergus Mathews & Iredale 1913 CC10]

Mergus serrator Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, M02 [incl. *Mergus castor CC10, *Merganser castor CC10, Mergus serrator schioleri CS77]

Somateria mollissima (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 [=Anas mollissima M02; incl. S. gravipes Harrison 1979 M02]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CG99] Carlton, J. T., J. B. Geller, M. L. Reaka-Kudla & E. A. Norse. 1999. Historical extinctions in the sea. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 30: 315–338.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[CS77] Cramp, S., & K. E. L. Simmons (eds) 1977. Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palaearctic vol. 1. Ostrich to Ducks. Oxford University Press: Oxford.

[D56] Dawes, B. 1956. The Trematoda with special reference to British and other European forms. University Press: Cambridge.

[FP64] Fisher, J., & R. T. Peterson. 1964. The World of Birds: A comprehensive guide to general ornithology. Macdonald: London.

[I92] Iwahashi, J. (ed.) 1992. Reddo Deeta Animaruzu: a pictorial of Japanese fauna facing extinction. JICC: Tokyo.

[J63] Jánossy, D. 1963. Letztinterglaziale Vertebraten-Fauna aus der Kálmán Lambrecht-Höhle (Bükk-Gebirge, nordost-Ungarn) I. Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 9 (3–4): 293–331.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L58] Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii: Holmiae.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[PJ02] Paxinos, E. E., H. F. James, S. L. Olson, M. D. Sorenson, J. Jackson & R. C. Fleischer. 2002. mtDNA from fossils reveals a radiation of Hawaiian geese recently derived from the Canada goose (Branta canadensis). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 99: 1399–1404.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds.) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. Blandford Press: London.

[SC99] Sorenson, M. D., A. Cooper, E. E. Paxinos, T. W. Quinn, H. F. James, S. L. Olson & R. C. Fleischer. 1999. Relationships of the extinct moa-nalos, flightless Hawaiian waterfowl, based on ancient DNA. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B—Biological Sciences 266: 2187–2193.

Last updated: 27 November 2021.

Galliformes

Orange-footed scrubfowls Megapodius reinwardt, copyright Andrea Arbogast.

Belongs within: Galloanseres.
Contains: Cracidae, Phasiani.

The Galliformes, gamebirds, are a cosmopolitan group of heavy-bodied, largely terrestrial birds with short, rounded wings adapted for rapid bursts of flight; walking is commonly the preferred means of locomotion. Members of the galliform crown group are united by possession of a shallow cotyla scapularis on the coracoid (Mayr & Weidig 2004).

Galliformes [Craci, Cracoidea, Galli]
    |--Sylviornis [Sylviornithes, Sylviornithidae] WD17
    |    `--S. neocaledoniae Poplin 1980 WD17
    `--+--Megavitiornis Worthy 2000 WD17, W00
       |    `--*M. altirostris Worthy 2000 W00
       `--+--+--Cracidae MW04
          |  `--Phasiani MW04
          `--Megapodiidae MW04
               |  i. s.: Chosornis praeteritus FP64
               |         Progura gallinacea De Vis 1889 W00, U93 [incl. P. naracoortensis van Tets 1974 W00]
               |         Ngawupodius minya Boles & Ivison 1999 M09
               |         Mwalau WD17
               |--+--Talegalla Lesson 1828 WD17, B94 [Talegallidae]
               |  |    |--T. cuvieri JT12
               |  |    |--T. fuscirostris W00
               |  |    `--T. jobiensis W00
               |  `--+--Leipoa Gould 1840 WD17, B94 [Leipoidae]
               |     |    `--L. ocellata Gould 1840 WS48
               |     `--+--Aepypodius BKB15
               |        |    |--A. arfakianus W00
               |        |    `--A. bruijnii JT12
               |        `--Alectura Latham 1824 WD17, B94 (see below for synonymy)
               |             `--A. lathami Gray 1831 [=Catheturus lathami, Tallegallus lathami] CC10
               |                  |--A. l. lathami PT03
               |                  `--A. l. purpureicollis PT03
               `--+--Macrocephalon Müller 1846 WD17, B94 [Macrocephalidae]
                  |    `--M. maleo W00
                  `--+--Eulipoa wallacei WD17
                     `--Megapodius Gaimard 1823 WD17, B94
                          |  i. s.: M. alimentum Steadman 1989 W00
                          |         M. amissus Worthy 2000 W00
                          |         M. bernsteinii JT12
                          |         M. geelvinkianus JT12
                          |         M. laperouse W00
                          |           |--M. l. laperouse FP64
                          |           `--M. l. senex FP64
                          |         M. molistructor W00
                          |         M. nicobariensis JT12
                          |--M. wallacei BKB15
                          `--+--+--M. cumingii JT12
                             |  |    |--M. c. cumingii R02
                             |  |    `--M. c. sanghirensis R02
                             |  `--M. tenimberensis JT12
                             `--+--+--M. layardi JT12
                                |  `--M. pritchardii JT12
                                `--+--+--M. eremita BKB15
                                   |  `--M. reinwardt BKB15
                                   `--+--M. affinis BKB15
                                      `--+--M. forstenii BKB15
                                         `--M. freycinet Gaimard 1823 BKB15, C04
                                              |--M. f. freycinet WS48
                                              `--M. f. tumulus Gould 1842 WS48

Alectura Latham 1824 WD17, B94 [incl. Catheturus Swainson 1837 B94; Alecturidae, Catheturidae]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[C04] Clarke, J. A. 2004. Morphology, phylogenetic taxonomy, and systematics of Ichthyornis and Apatornis (Avialae: Ornithurae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 286: 1–179.

[FP64] Fisher, J., & R. T. Peterson. 1964. The World of Birds: A comprehensive guide to general ornithology. Macdonald: London.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[M09] Mayr, G. 2009. Paleogene Fossil Birds. Springer.

[MW04] Mayr, G., & I. Weidig. 2004. The Early Eocene bird Gallinuloides wyomingensis—a stem group representative of Galliformes. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 49 (2): 211–217.

[PT03] Prum, R. O., & R. Torres. 2003. Structural colouration of avian skin: Convergent evolution of coherently scattering dermal collagen arrays. Journal of Experimental Biology 206: 2409–2429.

[R02] Riley, J. 2002. Population sizes and the status of endemic and restricted-range bird species on Sangihe Island, Indonesia. Bird Conservation International 12: 53–78.

[U93] Unwin, D. M. 1993. Aves. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 717–737. Chapman & Hall: London.

[WS48] Whittell, H. M., & D. L. Serventy. 1948. A systematic list of the birds of Western Australia. Public Library, Museum and Art Gallery of Western Australia, Special Publication 1: 1–126.

[W00] Worthy, T. H. 2000. The fossil megapodes (Aves: Megapodiidae) of Fiji with descriptions of a new genus and two new species. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand 30 (4): 337–364.

[WD17] Worthy, T. H., F. J. Degrange, W. D. Handley & M. S. Y. Lee. 2017. The evolution of giant flightless birds and novel phylogenetic relationships for extinct fowl (Aves, Galloanseres). Royal Society Open Science 4: 170975.

Meleagridinae

Female common turkey Meleagris gallopavo with chicks, copyright Kevin Cole.

Belongs within: Phasianidae.

The Meleagridinae, turkeys, are a small group of North American gamebirds with featherless heads and necks and a metallic gloss over much of the plumage. The common turkey Meleagris gallopavo is widely farmed as a source of meat.

<==Meleagridinae [Galloparinae, Gallopavoninae, Meleagrididae, Meleagridoidea] CC10
    |--Agriocharis ocellata L81
    |--Parapavo californicus FP64
    `--Meleagris Linnaeus 1758 CC10 [=Galloparus Chenu & des Murs 1854 B94, Gallopavo Brisson 1760 B94]
         |--*M. gallopavo Linnaeus 1758 CC10
         |    |--M. g. gallopavo L81
         |    |--M. g. intermedia L81
         |    |--M. g. merriami L81
         |    |--M. g. mexicana L81
         |    |--M. g. onusta RN72
         |    |--M. g. osceola RN72
         |    `--M. g. silvestris L81
         |--M. cristata Linnaeus 1758 L58
         |--M. leopoldi FP64
         |--M. ocellata ZJM03
         `--M. satyra Linnaeus 1758 L58

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[FP64] Fisher, J., & R. T. Peterson. 1964. The World of Birds: A comprehensive guide to general ornithology. Macdonald: London.

[L58] Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii: Holmiae.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. London, Blandford Press.

[ZJM03] Zeffer, A., L. C. Johansson & Å. Marmebro. 2003. Functional correlation between habitat use and leg morphology in birds (Aves). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 79: 461–484.

Lagopus

Willow grouse Lagopus lagopus, from the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Belongs within: Tetraoninae.

Lagopus, the ptarmigans, is a genus of grouse found in boreal regions of Eurasia and North America, species of which change colour between grey or brown plumage in summer and largely white plumage in winter.

<==Lagopus Brisson 1760 [Lagopodinae] M02
    |  i. s.: L. atavus Janossy 1974 P04 [=L. lagopus atavus M02]
    |         L. scoticus (Latham 1789) CC10 [=Tetrao scoticus CC10, L. lagopus scoticus L81]
    |--L. leucura JT12
    `--+--L. lagopus (Linnaeus 1758) JT12, M02 (see below for synonymy)
       |    |--L. l. lagopus L81
       |    `--L. l. rossicus L81
       `--L. muta (Montin 1781) JT12, M02 [=Tetrao mutus M02; incl. L. mutus correzensis Mourer-Chauviré 1975 M02]
            |--L. m. muta WH02
            |--L. m. helveticus WH02
            `--L. m. japonicus Clark 1907 I92

Lagopus lagopus (Linnaeus 1758) JT12, M02 [=Tetrao lagopus M02; incl. L. medius Woldřich 1893 M02, L. lagopus noaillensis Mourer-Chauviré 1975 M02]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica, 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[I92] Iwahashi, J. (ed.) 1992. Reddo Deeta Animaruzu: a pictorial of Japanese fauna facing extinction. JICC: Tokyo.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[P04] Popov, V. V. 2004. Pliocene small mammals (Mammalia, Lipotyphla, Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, Rodentia) from Muselievo (north Bulgaria). Geodiversitas 26 (3): 403–491.

[WH02] Worthy, T. H., & R. N. Holdaway. 2002. The Lost World of the Moa: Prehistoric life of New Zealand. Indiana University Press: Bloomington (Indiana).

Lophura

Swinhoe's pheasant Lophura swinhoii, copyright Nick Athanas.

Belongs within: Phasianidae.

Lophura is a genus of pheasants found in eastern Asia, males of which are strikingly coloured with long tails and extensive patches of bright, bare skin around the eyes.

<==Lophura
    |  i. s.: L. hoogerwerfi JT12
    |         L. imperialis USDI77
    |--+--L. erythrophthalma BKB15
    |  |    |--L. e. erythrophthalma RN72
    |  |    `--L. e. pyronota RN72
    |  `--+--L. diardi BKB15
    |     `--L. ignita BKB15
    |          |--L. i. ignita RN72
    |          |--L. i. macartneyisumatrana RN72
    |          |--L. i. nobilis RN72
    |          `--L. i. rufa RN72
    `--+--L. inornata BKB15
       `--+--L. bulweri BKB15 [=Lobiophasis bulweri RN72]
          `--+--+--L. leucomelanos JT12
             |  |    |--L. l. leucomelanos L81
             |  |    |--L. l. hamiltonii L81
             |  |    |--L. l. lathami RN72
             |  |    |--L. l. lineata RN72
             |  |    `--L. l. melanota RN72
             |  `--L. nycthemera (Linnaeus 1758) JT12, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
             |       |--L. n. nycthemera RN72
             |       |--L. n. annamensis RN72
             |       |--L. n. beaulieui RN72
             |       |--L. n. beli RN72
             |       |--L. n. berliozi RN72
             |       |--L. n. engelbachi RN72
             |       |--L. n. fokiensis RN72
             |       |--L. n. jonesi RN72
             |       |--L. n. lewisi RN72
             |       |--L. n. ripponi RN72
             |       |--L. n. rufipes RN72
             |       `--L. n. whiteheadi RN72
             `--+--L. swinhoii JT12
                `--+--L. edwardsi JT12
                   `--L. hatinhensis JT12

Lophura nycthemera (Linnaeus 1758) JT12, CC10 [=Phasianus nycthemerus CC10, Gallophasis nycthemerus CC10, Gennaeus nycthemerus CC10]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. London, Blandford Press.

[USDI77] USDI (United States Department of the Interior). 1977. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants—republication of list of species. Federal Register 42: 36420–36431.

Tetraoninae

Lesser prairie chicken Tympanuchus pallidicinctus, copyright Greg Kramos.

Belongs within: Phasianidae.
Contains: Lagopus.

The Tetraonidae are the grouse, a group of gamebirds found primarily in colder parts of Eurasia and North America. Grouse are distinguished from other gamebirds by the presence of feathers on the lower leg. Males of the prairie chickens Tympanuchus and the sage grouse Centrocercus have large inflatable sacs on the neck that are used in mating displays. Members of the genus Tetrao are found in cooler parts of the Palaearctic region; males are mostly black birds with red wattles above the eyes.

Synapomorphies (from Dyke et al. 2003): Distal end of condylus ventralis of humerus greatly extended distally; ischium shallow and wide, relative to width of synsacrum; tarsus partially feathered.

<==Tetraoninae [Tetraonidae, Urogallinae]
    |  i. s.: Canachites canadensis FP64
    |         Lyrurus Swainson 1832 CC10, M02 [Lyrurinae]
    |         Tetrastes Keysserling & Blasius 1840 MMJ03, B94 [Tetrastinae]
    |--Bonasa Stephens 1810 JT12, M02
    |    |--B. bonasia (Linnaeus 1758) M02 (see below for synonymy)
    |    `--B. sewerzowi JT12
    `--+--‘Bonasa’ umbellus JT12
       `--+--+--Lagopus BKB15
          |  `--+--Centrocercus BKB15
          |     |    |--C. minimus JT12
          |     |    `--C. urophasianus JT12
          |     `--+--‘Dendragapus’ obscurus JT12
          |        `--Tympanuchus JT12
          |             |  i. s.: T. stirtoni FP64
          |             |--T. cupido BKB15
          |             |    |--T. c. cupido CC10
          |             |    |--T. c. americanus (Reichenbach 1853) L81, CC10 [=Cupidonia americana CC10]
          |             |    |--T. c. attwateri USDI77
          |             |    `--T. c. pinnatus (Brewster 1885) [=Cupidonia pinnata] CC10
          |             `--+--T. pallidicinctus BKB15
          |                `--T. phasianellus (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
          |                     |--T. p. phasianellus CC10
          |                     `--T. p. columbianus (Ord in Guthrie 1815) (see below for synonymy) CC10
          `--+--+--Falcipennis canadensis BKB15
             |  `--Dendragapus BKB15
             |       |--D. canadensis JT12
             |       |--D. falcipennis JT12
             |       `--D. fuliginosus JT12
             `--Tetrao Linnaeus 1758 JT12, M02 [incl. Urogallus Scopoli 1777 B94]
                  |  i. s.: T. canadensis Linnaeus 1758 L58
                  |         T. cupido Linnaeus 1758 L58
                  |         T. marilandicus Linnaeus 1758 L58
                  |         T. orientalis Linnaeus 1758 L58
                  |         T. urogalloides C01
                  |--+--T. mlokosiewiczi JT12
                  |  `--T. tetrix Linnaeus 1758 JT12, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
                  |       |--T. t. tetrix CC10
                  |       `--‘Lyrurus’ t. britannicus Witherby & Lönnberg 1913 CC10
                  `--+--T. parvirostris JT12
                     `--T. urogallus Linnaeus 1758 JT12, M02 (see below for synonymy)

Bonasa bonasia (Linnaeus 1758) M02 [=Tetrao bonasia M02, Tetrastes bonasia T89; incl. Tetrastes praebonasia Jánossy 1974 M02, B. praebonasia M02, Lagopus voinstvenskii Ganea 1972 M02]

Tetrao tetrix Linnaeus 1758 JT12, CC10 [=Lyrurus tetrix CC10; incl. Lagopus balcanicus Boev 1995 M02, Lyrurus tetrix longipes Mourer-Chauviré 1975 M02, Ly. partium Kretzoi 1962 M02, Tetrao partium M02]

Tetrao urogallus Linnaeus 1758 JT12, M02 [incl. T. conjugens Jánossy 1974 M02, T. macropus Jánossy 1976 M02, T. praeurogallus Jánossy 1969 M02, T. rhodopensis Boev 1998 M02]

Tympanuchus phasianellus (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CC10 [=Tetrao phasianellus CC10, Pedioecetes phasianellus CC10]

Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus (Ord in Guthrie 1815) [=Phasianus columbianus, Pedioecetes phasianellus columbianus, Podioecetus (l. c.) columbianus] CC10

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[C01] Csiki, E. 1901. Utivázlat [Reiseskizze]. In: Horváth, G. (ed.) Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazása [Dritte Asiatische Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] vol. 2. Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazásának Állattani Eredményei [Zoologische Ergebnisse der Dritten Asiatischen Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] pp. xii–xli. Victor Hornyánszky: Budapest, and Karl W. Hierseman: Leipzig.

[FP64] Fisher, J., & R. T. Peterson. 1964. The World of Birds: A comprehensive guide to general ornithology. Macdonald: London.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L58] Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii: Holmiae.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[MMJ03] Mayr, G., A. Manegold & U. S. Johansson. 2003. Monophyletic groups within ‘higher land birds’—comparison of morphological and molecular data. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 41: 233–248.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[T89] Takeshita, N. 1989. Nihon no Yachoo. Kogakukan: Tokyo.

[USDI77] USDI (United States Department of the Interior). 1977. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants—republication of list of species. Federal Register 42: 36420–36431.

Last updated: 15 June 2019.

Francolinus

Grey francolin Francolinus pondicerianus interpositus, copyright Jugal Tiwari.

Belongs within: Phasianidae.

Francolinus, the francolins, is a diverse genus of quail- and partridge-like birds found in Africa and southern Asia. Members of the genus have streaked, barred or vermiculated plumage dorsally, and scutellate scalation on the rear of the tarsus (Dinesen et al. 1994).

Recent phylogenetic studies indicate that the genus Francolinus as previously recognised is broadly polyphyletic. In particular, the junglefowl of the genus Gallus, including the domestic chicken G. gallus, may be nested within Francolinus. Junglefowl are distinguished from other members of the Phasianidae by the presence in males of well-developed wattles and a comb on the head, and a strongly arched tail. They are currently found in tropical Asia, though fossils also indicate the presence of chickens in Europe during the warm interglacials of the Pleistocene (Mlíkovský 2002). The domestic chicken, of course, has been carried by humans around the world.

<==Francolinus Stephens 1819 [Francolinini] B94
    |--F. francolinus BKB15
    |    |--F. f. francolinus L81
    |    `--F. f. asiae L81
    `--+--+--F. coqui BKB15
       |  `--F. lathami JT12
       |--+--F. sephaena BKB15
       |  `--+--F. gularis JT12
       |     `--F. pondicerianus JT12
       |          |--F. p. pondicerianus L81
       |          `--F. p. interpositus L81
       `--+--+--F. levaillantii BKB15
          |  `--+--F. finschi BKB15
          |     `--+--F. shelleyi BKB15
          |        `--+--F. africanus BKB15
          |           `--F. levaillantoides BKB15
          |                |--F. l. levaillantoides B93
          |                `--F. l. jugularis (see below for synonymy) B93
          `--+--Bambusicola JT12
             |    |--B. fytchii JT12
             |    `--B. thoracica WBSJ82
             |         |--B. t. thoracica WBSJ82
             |         `--B. t. sonorivox WBSJ82
             `--Gallus Brisson 1760 BKB15, CC10 [incl. Pliogallus Gaillard 1939 M02; Gallini]
                  |  i. s.: G. beremendensis Jánossy 1976 M02
                  |         G. europaeus Harrison 1978 M02
                  |         G. moldovicus Burčak-Abramovič, Ganea & Šušpanov 1993 M02
                  |--*G. gallus (Linnaeus 1758) CC10, KB14, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
                  |    |--G. g. gallus SMD01
                  |    |--G. g. bankiva Temminck 1813 L81, CC10
                  |    |--G. g. domesticus (Linnaeus 1758) SMD01
                  |    |--G. g. ferrugineus L81
                  |    |--G. g. jabouillei RN72
                  |    |--G. g. murghii L81
                  |    `--G. g. spadiceus RN72
                  `--+--G. varius KB14
                     `--+--G. lafayetii BKB15
                        `--G. sonneratii BKB15

Francolinus incertae sedis:
  F. ahantensis JT12
  F. albogularis DL94
  F. camerunensis JT12
  F. chinensis S89
  F. clappertoni Children 1826 [=Perdix clappertoni; incl. F. rueppellii Gray 1844] S05
    |--F. c. clappertoni S05
    |--F. c. koenigseggi Madarász 1914 S05
    |--F. c. nigrosquamatus Neumann 1902 S05
    `--F. c. sharpii Ogilvie-Grant 1892 S05
  F. harwoodi JT12
  F. icterorhynchus L81
  F. jacksoni JT12
  F. nobilis JT12
  F. ochropectus FP64
  F. pictus DL94
  F. pintadeanus JT12
  F. psilolaemus JT12
  F. rufopictus JT12
  F. schlegelii DL94
  F. streptophorus JT12
  F. swierstrai FP64

Inorganic: Gallus gallus minilorientalus Okamura 1987 O87

Nomina nuda: Gallus steinheimensis Fraas in Engel 1908 M02

Francolinus levaillantoides jugularis [incl. Scleroptila jugularis cunenensis Roberts 1932, S. jugularis gilli Roberts ex Brooke 1993 (n. n.)] B93

*Gallus gallus (Linnaeus 1758) CC10, KB14, CC10 [=Phasianus gallus CC10; incl. *Pliogallus crassipes Gaillard 1939 M02, G. domesticus fossilis Giebel 1847 (n. n.) M02, P. kormosi Gaillard 1939 M02, G. gallus levantinus Pichon & Tchernov 1987 M02]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[B93] Brooke, R. K. 1993. Annotated catalogue of the Aves type specimens in the South African Museum. Annals of the South African Museum 102 (10): 327–349.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[DL94] Dinesen, L., T. Lehmberg, J. O. Svendsen, L. A. Hansen & J. Fjeldså. 1994. A new genus and species of perdicine bird (Phasianidae, Perdicini) from Tanzania, a relict form with Indo-Malayan affinities. Ibis 136: 2–11.

[FP64] Fisher, J., & R. T. Peterson. 1964. The World of Birds: A comprehensive guide to general ornithology. Macdonald: London.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[KB14] Kimball, R. T., & E. L. Braun. 2014. Does more sequence data improve estimates of galliform phylogeny? Analyses of a rapid radiation using a complete data matrix. PeerJ 2: e361.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[O87] Okamura, C. 1987. New facts: Homo and all Vertebrata were born simultaneously in the former Paleozoic in Japan. Original Report of the Okamura Fossil Laboratory 15: 347–573.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. London, Blandford Press.

[S89] Salvadori, T. 1889. Viaggio di Leonardo Fea nella Birmania e nelle regioni vicine. XIX.—Uccelli raccolti nei Monti Carin a nord-est di Tounghoo, nel Pegù presso Rangoon e Tounghoo e nel Tenasserim presso Malewoon. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova, Serie 2^a, 7: 369–438.

[SMD01] Skoracki, M., W. Magowski & J. Dabert. 2001. Picobia polonica sp. n. (Acari: Prostigmata: Syringophilidae), a new species of quill mite from the domestic hen, Gallus gallus domesticus (Aves: Phasianidae). Folia Parasitologica 48: 154–158.

[S05] Steinheimer, F. D. 2005. Eduard Rüppel’s avian types at the Natural History Museum, Tring (Aves). Senckenbergiana Biologica 85 (2): 233–264.

[WBSJ82] Wild Bird Society of Japan. 1982. A Field Guide to the Birds of Japan. Kodansha International Ltd.: Tokyo.

Last updated: 16 June 2019.

Coturnix

Common quail Coturnix coturnix, photographed by Wr.

Belongs within: Phasianidae.

Coturnix includes the Old World quails: small, short-tailed, often cryptically coloured gamebirds. They are relatively strong long-distance fliers, and include the only migratory phasianids. The king quail Coturnix chinensis, found in the wild from southern Asia to eastern Australia, is commonly kept as a cagebird; males of this species have black and white face markings together with blue coloration on the flanks and sides of the neck. The swamp quail C. ypsilophora of Tasmania and the brown quail C. australis of mainland Australia and New Guinea are uniformly brownish birds that are most commonly found in damp, grassy habitats.

Characters (from Madge & McGowan 2002): Bill slender; tail with 8-12 insignificant feathers, concealed by the coverts; outer primaries markedly long; tarsi unspurred.

<==Coturnix Bonnaterre 1791 CC10 (see below for synonymy)
    |  i. s.: C. coromandelica (Gmelin 1789) [=Tetrao coromandelicus] CC10
    |         C. delegorguei JT12
    |         C. longipes (Milne-Edwards 1869) (see below for synonymy) M02
    |--C. chinensis (Linnaeus 1766) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. c. chinensis L81
    |    `--C. c. lineata L81
    `--+--+--C. australis (Latham 1802) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
       |  `--C. ypsilophora Bosc 1792 BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
       `--+--Margaroperdix madagascariensis BKB15
          `--+--+--C. coturnix (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
             |  |    |--C. c. coturnix L81
             |  |    |--C. c. africana L81
             |  |    `--C. c. confusa RN72
             |  `--C. japonica BKB15 [=C. coturnix japonica L81]
             `--+--C. novaezelandiae Quoy & Gaimard in Dumont d’Urville 1830 BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
                `--C. pectoralis Gould 1837 BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)

Coturnix Bonnaterre 1791 CC10 [=Ortyx Chenu & des Murs 1854 non Stephens 1819 B94; incl. Palaeoperdix Milne-Edwards 1869 M02, Synaecus Agassiz 1846 CC10, Synoicus Gould 1843 CC10, Ypsilophorus Mathews 1912 CC10, Zecoturnix Iredale & Mathews 1926 CC10; Coturnicini, Ortygini]

Coturnix australis (Latham 1802) BKB15, CC10 [=Perdix australis CC10, C. ypsilophora australis CC10, *Synaecus australis CC10, Synoecus (l. c.) australis CC10, *Synoicus ypsilophorus australis CC10, WS48, *Ypsilophorus australis CC10; incl. C. australis mungi Mathews 1912 WS48, C. australis rogersi Mathews 1912 WS48]

Coturnix chinensis (Linnaeus 1766) BKB15, CC10 [=Tetrao chinensis CC10, Excalfactoria chinensis CC10, Excalphatoria (l. c.) sinensis CC10]

Coturnix coturnix (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, CC10 [=Tetrao coturnix CC10, *Ortyx coturnix B94; incl. *Coturnix communis CC10, Scolopax ghardalamensis Fischer & Stephan 1974 M02]

Coturnix longipes (Milne-Edwards 1869) [=*Palaeoperdix longipes, Palaeortyx longipes; incl. Palaeocryptonyx gaillardi Ennouchi 1930, Proalector gaillardi, Palaeortyx phasianoides grivensis Ballmann 1969 non Lydekker 1893, Palaeortyx intermedia Ballmann 1969] M02

Coturnix novaezelandiae Quoy & Gaimard in Dumont d’Urville 1830 BKB15, CC10 [=C. novaezealandiae CC10, *Zecoturnix novaezelandiae CC10; incl. C. novaezealandiae pounami Mathews 1944 CC10]

Coturnix pectoralis Gould 1837 BKB15, CC10 [=C. novaezealandiae pectoralis FST81; incl. C. pectoralis praetermissa Mathews 1912 WS48]

Coturnix ypsilophora Bosc 1792 BKB15, CC10 [=C. ypsilophorus CC10, Synoicus ypsilophorus CC10; incl. Synoicus diemenensis Gould 1847 CC10, Synoecus (l. c.) diemenensis CC10]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[FST81] Falla, R. A., R. B. Sibson & E. G. Turbott. 1981. Collins Guide to the Birds of New Zealand and Outlying Islands 2^nd ed. with addenda. Collins: Auckland.

[JT12] Jetz, W., G. H. Thomas, J. B. Joy, K. Hartmann & A. Ø. Mooers. 2012. The global diversity of birds in space and time. Nature 491: 444–448.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds.) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. Blandford Press: London.

[WS48] Whittell, H. M., & D. L. Serventy. 1948. A systematic list of the birds of Western Australia. Public Library, Museum and Art Gallery of Western Australia, Special Publication 1: 1–126.

Last updated: 18 June 2019.

Anserinae

Mute swan Cygnus olor, photographed by Andrew Dunn.

Belongs within: Anatidae.
Contains: Branta, Anser.

The Anserinae contains the swans and (the majority of the) geese. In general, Anserinae have longer necks than most other waterfowl, and more robust, less flattened bills. However, recent phylogenetic analyses (e.g. Burleigh et al. 2015) place the pink-eared duck Malacorhynchus membranaceus of Australia as a basal anserine despite its short neck and broadly flattened bill. Also placed within the Anserinae are the coscoroba Coscoroba coscoroba, a white swan-like bird from southern South America, and the Cape Barren goose Cereopsis novaehollandiae of southern Australia. Cnemiornis, a recently extinct genus of two species of large flightless goose from New Zealand, is generally believed to have been closely allied to the Cape Barren goose.

The swans of the genus Cygnus are particularly large and long-necked birds. The majority of swan species are found in higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere and are predominantly white in coloration. However, distinctive in both distribution and coloration are the black swan Cygnus atratus of Australia and the black-necked swan C. melancoryphus of South America. The mute swan Cygnus olor has an orange-red bill with a large black knob at the base, and has been widely introduced outside its native Palaearctic range as an ornamental bird.

See also: Coscoroba.

<==Anserinae [Anseriinae, Anserina, Cygnopsidinae]
    |  i. s.: Geochen rhuax (n. d.) PJ02
    |--+--Malacorhynchus Swainson 1831 BKB15, CC10 [Malacorhynchini]
    |  |    |--*M. membranaceus (Latham 1802) [=Anas membranacea; incl. M. membranaceus assimilis Mathews 1912] CC10
    |  |    `--M. scarletti Olson 1977 CC10
    |  `--+--Coscoroba Reichenbach 1853 BKB15, B94 [Coscorobinae]
    |     |    `--C. coscoroba BKB15
    |     `--Cereopsini [Cereopsina] CC10
    |          |--Cereopsis Latham 1802 BKB15, CC10 [Cereopseinae]
    |          |    `--*C. novaehollandiae Latham 1802 (see below for synonymy) CC10
    |          `--Cnemiornis Owen 1866 [Cnemiornithidae] CC10
    |               |--*C. calcitrans Owen 1866 (see below for synonymy) CC10
    |               `--C. gracilis Forbes 1892 [incl. C. septentrionalis Oliver 1955] CC10
    `--+--Anserini PJ02
       |    |--Branta BKB15
       |    `--+--+--‘Chen’ canagica BKB15
       |       |  `--Anser BKB15
       |       `--Chen BKB15
       |            |--C. caerulescens BKB15
       |            `--C. rossii BKB15
       `--Cygnus Bechstein 1803 BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
            |  i. s.: C. atavus (Fraas 1870) (see below for synonymy) M02
            |         C. equitum Bate 1916 [=Anser equitum, C. (Olor) equitum] M02
            |         C. herenthalsi Beneden in Lambrecht 1933 [=C. herrenthalsi] M02
            |         C. verae Boev 2000 M02
            |         C. (Olor Wagler 1832) M02
            |           |--C. (O.) bewickii Yarrell 1830 M02 (see below for synonymy)
            |           |--C. (O.) csakvarensis Lambrecht 1933 [=*Cygnanser csakvarensis] M02
            |           `--C. (O.) falconeri Parker 1865 (see below for synonymy) M02
            |--C. melancoryphus BKB15
            `--+--+--*C. (Cygnus) olor (Gmelin 1789) CC10, BKB15, CC10 [=Anas olor CC10]
               |  `--C. atratus (Latham 1790) BKB15, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
               `--+--C. buccinator BKB15 [=C. cygnus buccinator RN72, Olor buccinator L81]
                  `--+--C. columbianus (Ord 1815) BKB15, CS77 (see below for synonymy)
                     `--C. cygnus (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 [=Anas cygnus M02; incl. C. cygnus islandicus Brehm 1831 CS77]

*Cereopsis novaehollandiae Latham 1802 [=C. cinerea Vieillot 1816; incl. C. australis Swainson 1837, C. novaehollandiae georgi Mathews 1912, C. novaehollandiae grisea Storr 1980, Anser griseus Vieillot 1818, C. novaezealandiae Oliver 1955 non Forbes 1892, Anas terraeleeuwin Bennett 1830] CC10

*Cnemiornis calcitrans Owen 1866 [incl. Cn. minor Forbes 1892, Cereopsis novaezealandiae Forbes 1892] CC10

Cygnus Bechstein 1803 BKB15, CC10 [incl. Chenopis Wagler 1832 CC10, Cygnanser Kretzoi 1957 M02, Palaeocycnus Stejneger 1882 M02, Palaeocygnus Oberholser 1908 M02; Cygnina, Cygninae, Olorinae]

Cygnus atavus (Fraas 1870) [=Anas atava, Anser atavus; incl. Anas cygniformis Fraas 1870, Anser cygniformis, Palaelodus steinheimensis Fraas 1870] M02

Cygnus atratus (Latham 1790) BKB15, CC10 [=Anas atrata CC10, *Chenopis atrata CC10, Chenopis atratus CC10, Chenopsis (l. c.) atrata CC10, Chenopsis (l. c.) atratus CC10; incl. Cygnus chathamicus Oliver 1955 CC10, Cy. chathamensis CC10, Cy. chathamica CC10, Anas cygnus niger Perry 1811 CC10, Anser novaehollandiae Bonnaterre 1791 CC10, Anas plutonia Shaw 1792 CC10, Cygnus plutonius CC10, Chenopis atrata roberti Mathews 1912 CC10, Chenopis sumnerensis Forbes 1890 CC10, Cygnus sumnerensis CC10]

Cygnus columbianus (Ord 1815) BKB15, CS77 [=Anas columbianus CS77; incl. C. columbianus jankowskii Alpheraky 1904 CS77]

Cygnus (Olor) bewickii Yarrell 1830 M02 [=C. columbianus bewickii CS77; incl. Anser liskunae Kuročkin 1976 M02, Olor liskunae M02, A. subanser Jánossy 1983 M02]

Cygnus (Olor) falconeri Parker 1865 [=*Palaeocycnus falconeri, *Palaeocygnus falconeri; incl. Cygnus melitensis Falconer 1868] M02

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1–281.

[BKB15] Burleigh, J. G., R. T. Kimball & E. L. Braun. 2015. Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 53–63.

[CC10] Checklist Committee (OSNZ). 2010. Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica 4^th ed. Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Te Papa Press: Wellington.

[CS77] Cramp, S., & K. E. L. Simmons (eds) 1977. Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palaearctic vol. 1. Ostrich to Ducks. Oxford University Press: Oxford.

[L81] Long, J. L. 1981. Introduced Birds of the World: The worldwide history, distribution and influence of birds introduced to new environments. Reed: Sydney.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[PJ02] Paxinos, E. E., H. F. James, S. L. Olson, M. D. Sorenson, J. Jackson & R. C. Fleischer. 2002. MtDNA from fossils reveals a radiation of Hawaiian geese recently derived from the Canada goose (Branta canadensis). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 99: 1399–1404.

[RN72] Rutgers, A., & K. A. Norris (eds.) 1972. Encyclopaedia of Aviculture vol. 1. Blandford Press: London.

Last updated: 27 November 2021.