Corvoidea

Varied sitellas Daphoenositta chrysoptera striata, from Chiemomo.

Belongs within: Euoscines.
Contains: Melanocharitidae, Cinclosomatidae, Psophodes, Campephagidae, Pachycephalidae, Oriolidae, Vireonidae, Dicruridae, Rhipidura, Monarchidae, Corvidae, Lanius, Paradisaeidae, Cracticidae, Artamus, Platysteiridae, Aegithina, Malaconotidae, Vangidae, Prionops.

The Corvoidea is a clade of passerine birds that has been identified by molecular analyses. Basal lineages of the Corvoidea are found in the Australo-Papuan region, where the clade is believed to have originated, but members of various sub-clades are found in Eurasia and Africa, such as the Corvidae, Laniidae and Malaconotidae, while the Vireonidae are found in the Americas. Basal lineages of the Corvoidea include the Cnemophilidae, satinbirds, frugivorous birds with brightly coloured males found in New Guinea. Cnemophilids were previously believed to be closely related to the birds of paradise (Paradisaeidae), which are now placed elsewhere in the corvoids. The sitellas Daphoenositta are nuthatch-like birds found in Australia and New Guinea that feed by branching on branches and trunks.

See also: The shrikes of the south.

<==Corvoidea [Colluricinclidae]
    |--+--Melanocharitidae JF06
    |  `--Cnemophilus De Vis 1890 JF06, B94 [Cnemophilidae]
    |       |--C. macgregorii JT12
    |       `--+--C. loriae JT12
    |          `--Loboparadisaea sericea JT12
    `--+--+--Cinclosomatidae JF11
       |  `--+--+--Androphobus viridis JF11
       |     |  `--Psophodes JF11
       |     `--+--Oreocharis arfaki JF11
       |        `--Paramythia De Vis 1892 JF11, B94 [Paramythiinae]
       |             `--P. montium JF06
       `--+--+--Campephagidae JF11
          |  `--Mohoua Lesson 1835 JF11, B94 (see below for synonymy)
          |       |--M. novaeseelandiae (Gmelin 1789) JT12, WH02 [=Finschia novaeseelandiae HWT01]
          |       `--+--M. albicilla (Lesson 1830) JT12, WH02
          |          `--M. ochrocephala (Gmelin 1789) JT12, WH02
          `--+--+--Oreoica Gould 1838 JF11, B94 [Oreoicidae]
             |  |    `--O. gutturalis (Vigors & Horsfield 1827) (see below for synonymy) WS48
             |  `--+--Ornorectes cristatus JF11 [=Pitohui cristatus JT12]
             |     `--Aleadryas rufinucha JF11
             `--+--+--+--Pachycephalidae JF11
                |  |  `--Falcunculus Vieillot 1816 JF11, B94 [Falcunculidae]
                |  |       `--F. frontatus (Latham 1801) [=Lanius frontatus] WS48
                |  |            |--F. f. frontatus WS48
                |  |            |--F. f. leucogaster Gould 1848 [incl. F. leucogaster stirlingi Mathews 1915] WS48
                |  |            `--F. f. whitei Campbell 1910 WS48
                |  `--+--Oriolidae JF11
                |     `--+--Vireonidae JF11
                |        `--Pteruthius JT12
                |             |  i. s.: P. aeralatus [=Pterythrius aeralatus] S89
                |             |         P. cameranoi S89
                |             |         P. erythropterus A61
                |             |--+--P. flaviscapis JT12
                |             |  `--P. rufiventer JT12
                |             `--+--P. xanthochlorus JT12
                |                `--+--P. aenobarbus JT12
                |                   `--P. melanotis JT12
                `--+--Daphoenositta De Vis 1897 JF11, B94 (see below for synonymy)
                   |    |--D. chrysoptera JF06
                   |    |    |--D. c. chrysoptera M03
                   |    |    |--D. c. albata M03
                   |    |    |--D. c. leucocephala M03
                   |    |    `--D. c. striata M03
                   |    |--D. leucoptera (Gould 1839) M03, WS48 (see below for synonymy)
                   |    |--D. miranda JT12
                   |    `--D. pileata (Gould 1838) M03, WS48 (see below for synonymy)
                   `--+--+--Eulacestoma nigropectus JF11
                      |  `--+--Dicruridae BB05
                      |     `--+--+--Rhipidura BC04
                      |        |  `--+--Chaetorhynchus papuensis JF06
                      |        |     `--Lamprolia Finsch 1874 JF11, B94 [Lamproliidae]
                      |        |          `--L. victoriae FP64
                      |        |               |--L. v. victoriae FP64
                      |        |               `--L. v. kleinschmidti FP64
                      |        `--+--+--Platylophus Swainson 1832 JF11, B94 (see below for synonymy)
                      |           |  |    `--P. galericulatus JF11
                      |           |  `--Eurocephalus JT12
                      |           |       |--E. anguitimens JF06
                      |           |       `--E. rueppelli JT12
                      |           |--+--Ifrita kowaldi (DeVis 1890) JF11, N10 (see below for synonymy)
                      |           |  `--+--Monarchidae JF11
                      |           |     `--+--Corvidae JF11
                      |           |        `--Laniidae [Laniinae] B94
                      |           |             |--Urolestes melanoleucus JT12
                      |           |             `--Lanius JF11
                      |           `--+--+--Paradisaeidae JF11
                      |              |  `--Melampitta JF11
                      |              |       |--M. gigantea JF06
                      |              |       `--M. lugubris JF06
                      |              `--Corcoracidae [Corcoracinae] EC02
                      |                   |--Corcorax Lesson 1830 JF11, B94
                      |                   |    `--C. melanorhamphos JT12
                      |                   `--Struthidea Gould 1837 [Struthideidae, Struthideinae] B94
                      |                        `--S. cinerea JF06
                      `--+--+--Machaerirhynchus [Machaerirhynchidae] JF11
                         |  |    |--M. flaviventer M03
                         |  |    |    |--M. f. flaviventer M03
                         |  |    |    `--M. f. secundus M03
                         |  |    `--M. nigripectus JT12
                         |  `--+--Cracticidae JF06
                         |     `--+--Artamus JF06
                         |        `--Peltops JT12
                         |             |--P. blainvillii JT12
                         |             `--P. montanus JT12
                         `--+--+--Platysteiridae JF06
                            |  `--+--Pityriasis Lesson 1839 JT12, B94 [Pityriaseidae, Pityriaseinae]
                            |     |    `--P. gymnocephala JT12
                            |     `--+--Aegithina JF06
                            |        `--Rhagologus leucostigma JF11
                            `--+--Malaconotidae JF11
                               `--+--+--Vangidae JF11
                                  |  `--Philentoma JF11
                                  |       |--P. pyrhopterum JF11
                                  |       `--P. velata JT12
                                  `--+--Prionops JF11
                                     `--+--+--Megabyas flammulatus JT12 [=Bias flammulatus JF06]
                                        |  `--‘Prionops’ plumatus (Shaw 1809) JT12, L03
                                        |       |--P. p. plumatus [incl. P. p. haussarum Hartert 1921] L03
                                        |       `--P. p. cristatus Rüppell 1836 L03 (see below for synonymy)
                                        `--+--Bias musicus JF11
                                           `--+--Tephrodornis JF11
                                              |    |--T. gularis JF11
                                              |    |--T. pondicerianus RD02
                                              |    `--T. virgatus JF06
                                              `--Hemipus JF11
                                                   |--H. hirundinaceus JF11
                                                   `--H. picatus JF11
                                                        |--H. p. picatus L03
                                                        `--H. p. leggei Whistler 1939 (see below for synonymy) L03

Daphoenositta De Vis 1897 BC04, B94 [incl. Neositta Hellmayr 1901 B94; Daphoenosittidae, Daphoenosittinae, Neosittidae, Neosittinae]

Daphoenositta leucoptera (Gould 1839) M03, WS48 [=Sittella leucoptera WS48, D. chrysoptera leucoptera M03, Neositta leucoptera WS48; incl. N. pileata broomei Mathews 1912 WS48, N. pileata rogersi Mathews 1912 WS48]

Daphoenositta pileata (Gould 1838) M03, WS48 [=Sittella pileata WS48, D. chrysoptera pileata M03, Neositta pileata WS48; incl. N. pileata broomi Mathews 1912 WS48, Sittella melanocephala Gould 1838 WS48, N. pileata milligani Mathews 1922 WS48, N. pileata whitlocki Mathews 1912 WS48]

Hemipus picatus leggei Whistler 1939 [incl. H. p. insulae Koelz 1939] L03

Ifrita kowaldi (DeVis 1890) JF11, N10 [=Todopsis kowaldi N10; incl. I. coronata Rothschild 1898 N10]

Mohoua Lesson 1835 JF11, B94 [incl. Certhiparus Lafresnaye 1842 B94, Clitonyx Reichenbach 1853 B94; Certhiparinae, Mohouinae]

Oreoica gutturalis (Vigors & Horsfield 1827) [=Falcunculus gutturalis; incl. O. cristata lloydi Mathews 1917, O. cristata mungi Mathews 1912, O. cristata westralensis Mathews 1912] WS48

Platylophus Swainson 1832 JF11, B94 [incl. Lophocitta Gray 1841 B94; Lophocittidae]

Prionops plumatus cristatus Rüppell 1836 L03 [=P. (Lanius) cristatus (preoc. in Lanius); incl. P. cristata omoensis Neumann 1905 L03]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A61] Austin, O. L., Jr. 1961. Birds of the World: A survey of the twenty-seven orders and one hundred and fifty-five families. Paul Hamlyn: London.

[BC04] Barker, F. K., A. Cibois, P. Schikler, J. Feinstein & J. Cracraft. 2004. Phylogeny and diversification of the largest avian radiation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 101 (30): 11040-11045.

[BB05] Beresford, P., F. K. Barker, P. G. Ryan & T. M. Crowe. 2005. African endemics span the tree of songbirds (Passeri): Molecular systematics of several evolutionary ‘enigmas’. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B—Biological Sciences 272: 849-858.

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

[EC02] Ericson, P. G. P., L. Christidis, M. Irestedt & J. A. Norman. 2002. Systematic affinities of the lyrebirds (Passeriformes: Menura), with a novel classification of the major groups of passerine birds. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 25: 53-62.

[HWT01] Holdaway, R. N., T. H. Worthy & A. J. D. Tennyson. 2001. A working list of breeding bird species of the New Zealand region at first human contact. New Zealand Journal of Zoology 28: 119-187.

[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.

[JF11] Jønsson, K. A., P.-H. Fabre, R. E. Ricklefs & J. Fjeldså. 2011. Major global radiation of corvoid birds originated in the proto-Papuan archipelago. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 108 (6): 2328-2333.

[JF06] Jønsson, K. A., & J. Fjeldså. 2006. A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds. Zoologica Scripta 35: 149-186.

[L03] LeCroy, M. 2003. Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 5. Passeriformes: Alaudidae, Hirundinidae, Motacillidae, Campephagidae, Pycnonotidae, Irenidae, Laniidae, Vangidae, Bombycillidae, Dulidae, Cinclidae, Troglodytidae, and Mimidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 278: 1-156.

[M03] Morcombe, M. 2003. Field Guide to Australian Birds, 2^nd ed. Steve Parish Publishing.

[N10] Naish, D. 2010. Tetrapod Zoology: Book One. CFZ Press: Bideford (UK).

[RD02] Robin, V. V., & P. Davidar. 2002. The vertical stratification of birds in mixed species flocks at Parambikulam, south India: a comparison between two habitats. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 99 (3): 389-399.

[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 2a 7: 369-438.

[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.

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

Passeriformes

Rock wren Xenicus gilviventris, photographed by Pete McGregor.

Belongs within: Telluraves.
Contains: Tyranni, Menurae, Euoscines.

The Passeriformes are the passerine or perching birds, a clade including over half the living bird species. Passerines are primarily distinguished by their foot morphology, with an enlarged non-reversible hallux that is level with the other toes. Recent phylogenies have agreed in placing the Acanthisittidae, New Zealand wrens, at the base of the passerine tree. These are small, weakly flying birds with greatly reduced tails. Only two species of this family survive to the present day, the arboreal rifleman Acanthisitta chloris and the more terrestrial rock wren Xenicus gilviventris.

Synapomorphies (from Raikow 1982): Aegithognathous palate; tensor propatagialis brevis tendon extending through patagium to insertion on surface of extensor metacarpi radialis, then turning proximad and extending to insertion on humerus; spermatozoa bundled with coiled head and large acrosome; enlarged hallux; type VII deep plantar tendons (absent in Eurylaimidae); M. pubo-ischio femoralis with two sectors positioned cranially (pars cranialis) and caudally (pars caudalis) of each other; intrinsic foot muscles of digits II-IV absent (except occasional presence of reduced extensor brevis digiti IV).

Passeriformes [Ampelidae, Ampelididae, Clamatores, Eurylaimi, Oligomyodi]
    |--Wieslochia weissi M09
    |--Eupasseres EC02
    |    |--Tyranni EC02
    |    `--Passeri [Menuroidea, Oscines] OF19
    |         |--Menurae EC02
    |         `--Euoscines EC02
    `--Acanthisittidae [Acanthidosittidae, Acanthisitti, Acanthisittia, Acanthisittides, Acanthisittinae] EC02
         |  i. s.: Dendroscansor Millener & Worthy 1991 MW91
         |           `-*D. decurvirostris Millener & Worthy 1991 MW91
         |         Traversia Rothschild 1894 non Hooker 1864 (ICBN) [Traversiidae] CC10
         |           `--*T. lyalli Rothschild 1894 (see below for synonymy) CC10
         |         Pachyplichas Millener 1988 CC10
         |           |--*P. yaldwyni Millener 1988 CC10
         |           `--P. jagmi Millener 1988 CC10
         |--+--Kuiornis indicator OF19
         |  `--Acanthisitta Lafresnaye 1842 OF19, CC10 (see below for synonymy)
         |       `--A. chloris (Sparrman 1787) MW91 (see below for synonymy)
         |            |--A. c. chloris (see below for synonymy) CC10
         |            `--A. c. granti Mathews & Iredale 1913 [=Chlorisitta chloris granti] CC10
         `--Xenicus Gray 1855 OF19, CC10 [incl. Xenicornis Iredale & Mathews 1926 CC10; Xenicidae, Xenicornithidae]
              |--*X. longipes (Gmelin 1789) (see below for synonymy) CC10
              |    |--X. l. longipes CC10
              |    |--X. l. stokesii Gray 1862 [=X. longipes stokesi] CC10
              |    `--X. l. variabilis Stead 1936 [incl. Xenicornis longipes steadi Mathews 1944] CC10
              `--X. gilviventris Pelzeln 1867 (see below for synonymy) CC10

Passeriformes incertae sedis:
  Passerherbulus henslowii W69
  Pedinorhis stirpsarcana SWK87
  Ixocincla madagascariensis A61
  Nuttallornis borealis A61
  Penthestes atricapillus CM07
  Dendroscopus mahrattensis RD02
  Coquus USDI77
    |--C. newtoni USDI77
    `--C. typicus USDI77
  Hemipteryx Scl66
    |--H. immaculata Hartlaub in Sclater 1866 Scl66
    `--H. textrix Scl66
  Drymoeca subruficapilla Scl66
  Campicola pileata Scl66
  Bessonornis phoenicurus Scl66
  Petrocincla explorator Scl66
  Hyphantornis Scl66
    |--H. olivaceus Scl66
    `--H. spilonotus Scl66
  Chera progne Scl66
  Crithagra Scl66
    |--C. canicollis Scl66
    `--C. sulphurata Scl66
  Poliospiza gularis Scl66
  Fringillaria capensis Scl66
  Cuphopterus Hartlaub in Dohrn 1866 D66
    `--*C. dohrni Hartlaub in Dohrn 1866 D66
  Parinia leucophaea D66
  Buserinus rufilatus Hartlaub in Dohrn 1866 D66
  Symplectes princeps D66
  Bradyornis H66
    |--‘Crateropus’ guttatus H66
    `--B. spekei H66
  Mixornis W66
    |--M. flavicollis [=Timalia flavicollis] W66
    |--M. gularis (see below for synonymy) W66
    `--M. rubicapilla (Tickell 1833) [=Motacilla rubicapilla; incl. Mi. chloris, Mi. ruficeps] W66
  Otocompsa jocosa B66
  Calobates B66
    |--C. melanope [=Motacilla melanope] S89
    `--C. sulphurea B66
  Munia W66
    |--M. acuticauda W66
    |--M. amandava Sch66
    |--M. malabarica B66
    |--M. punctularia Sch66 [=Loxia punctularia W66]
    |--M. striata W66
    `--M. undulata [=Loxia undulata] W66
  Geobasileus R66
    |--G. chrysorrhous R66
    `--G. reguloides R66
  Turdicus Kretzoi 1962 M02
    `--*T. tenuis Kretzoi 1962 M02
  ‘Turdoides’ Jánossy 1979 non Crezschmar 1827 M02
    `--*T. borealis Jánossy 1979 M02

Acanthisitta Lafresnaye 1842 OF19, CC10 [=Acanthidositta Buller 1887 CC10; incl. Chlorisitta Mathews 1935 CC10]

Acanthisitta chloris (Sparrman 1787) MW91 [=Sitta chloris CC10, Acanthidositta chloris CC10, *Chlorisitta chloris CC10]

Acanthisitta chloris chloris (Sparrman 1787) [incl. Motacilla citrina Gmelin 1789, Acanthidositta citrina, Acanthisitta chloris citrina, Sylvia citrina, Motacilla citrinella Forster in Lichtenstein 1844, Sitta punctata Quoy & Gaimard in Dumont d’Urville 1830, Acanthisitta punctata, Acanthiza tenuirostris Lafresnaye 1841, *Acanthisitta tenuirostris] CC10

Mixornis gularis [=Motacilla gularis, Myiothera gularis, Timalia gularis; incl. Prinia pileata Blyth 1842, Mixornis sumatranus] W66

*Traversia lyalli Rothschild 1894 [=Xenicus lyalli; incl. X. insularis Buller 1895, Traversia insularis] CC10

Xenicus gilviventris Pelzeln 1867 [=Acanthisitta gilviventris, *Xenicornis longipes gilviventris, Zenicus (l. c.) gilviventris; incl. Xenicus haasti Buller 1869, Acanthisitta haastii, Xenicus gilviventris rineyi Falla 1953] CC10

*Xenicus longipes (Gmelin 1789) [=Motacilla longipes, Acanthisitta longipes, Sylvia longipes, Zenicus (l. c.) longipes] CC10

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A61] Austin, O. L., Jr. 1961. Birds of the World: A survey of the twenty-seven orders and one hundred and fifty-five families. Paul Hamlyn: London.

[B66] Bulger, G. E. 1866. List of birds observed at Wellington, Neilgherry Hills, about 6000 feet above the level of the sea, during the months of April and May, 1866. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 568–571.

[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.

[CM07] Cokendolpher, J. C., & P. G. Mitov. 2007. Natural enemies. In: Pinto-da-Rocha, R., G. Machado & G. Giribet (eds) Harvestmen: The Biology of Opiliones pp. 339–373. Harvard University Press: Cambridge (Massachusetts).

[D66] Dohrn, H. 1866. Synopsis of the birds of Ilha do Principe, with some remarks on their habits and descriptions of new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 324–332.

[EC02] Ericson, P. G. P., L. Christidis, M. Irestedt & J. A. Norman. 2002. Systematic affinities of the lyrebirds (Passeriformes: Menura), with a novel classification of the major groups of passerine birds. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 25: 53–62.

[H66] Hartlaub, G. 1866. On a new species of the genus Crateropus, Sw. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 435–436.

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

[MW91] Millener, P. R., & T. H. Worthy. 1991. Contributions to New Zealand’s late Quaternary avifauna. II: Dendroscansor decurvirostris, a new genus and species of wren (Aves: Acanthisittidae). Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand 21: 179–200.

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

[OF19] Oliveros, C. H., D. J. Field, D. T. Ksepka, F. K. Barker, A. Aleixo, M. J. Andersen, P. Alström, B. W. Benz, E. L. Braun, M. J. Braun, G. A. Bravo, R. T. Brumfield, R. T. Chesser, S. Claramunt, J. Cracraft, A. M. Cuervo, E. P. Derryberry, T. C. Glenn, M. G. Harvey, P. A. Hosner, L. Joseph, R. T. Kimball, A. L. Mack, C. M. Miskelly, A. T. Peterson, M. B. Robbins, F. H. Sheldon, L. F. Silveira, B. T. Smith, N. D. White, R. G. Moyle & B. C. Faircloth. 2019. Earth history and the passerine superradiation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 116 (16): 7916–7925.

Raikow, R. J. 1982. Monophyly of the Passeriformes: test of a phylogenetic hypothesis. Auk 99 (3): 431-455.

[R66] Ramsay, E. P. 1866. Notes on the most frequent fosterparents of the cuckoos of Australia. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 571–577.

[RD02] Robin, V. V., & P. Davidar. 2002. The vertical stratification of birds in mixed species flocks at Parambikulam, south India: a comparison between two habitats. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 99 (3): 389–399.

[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.

[Sch66] Schlegel, H. 1866. Communication from, on mammals and birds collected in Madagascar. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 419–426.

[Scl66] Sclater, P. L. 1866. Report on birds collected at Windvogelberg, South Africa, by Capt. G. E. Bulger, C. M. Z. S. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 21–23.

[SWK87] Snyder, N. F. R., J. W. Wiley & C. B. Kepler. 1987. The Parrots of Luquillo: Natural history and conservation of the Puerto Rican parrot. Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology: Los Angeles.

[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.

[W66] Walden, A. 1866. Notes on birds collected in Tennasserim and in the Andaman Islands. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 537–556.

[W69] Wiens, J. A. 1969. An approach to the study of ecological relationships among grassland birds. Ornithological Monographs 8: 1-93.

Last updated: 27 July 2019.

Corvidae

Common jay Garrulus glandarius, from here.

Belongs within: Corvoidea.
Contains: Corvus, Cyanocorax.

The Corvidae, crows, jays and magpies, are relatively large omnivorous passerines found worldwide. Historically, the family has been divided between the primarily black 'Corvinae' and the more colourful 'Garrulinae' but more recent analyses have not supported monophyly of either subgroup. The choughs of the genus Pyrrhocorax are two species with solidly black plumage but brightly coloured bill and feet found in alpine regions of Eurasia. Dendrocitta, the treepies, are long-tailed corvids with black, grey and rufous plumage found in tropical parts of Asia.

Characters (from Austin 1961): Bill strong, unnotched; nostrils usually covered by forward-directed bristles. Wings with ten primaries. Legs large and strong; tarsi scaled in front, smooth behind, terminating in a ridge.

<==Corvidae [Corvinae, Garrulinae, Monedulidae]
    |  i. s.: Cissilopha melanocyanea FS55
    |           |--C. m. melanocyanea FS55
    |           `--C. m. chavezi FS55
    |         Psilorhinus Rüppell 1837 B94
    |         Physocorax moneduloides S13
    |         Gazzola typica S13
    |--Miocitta galbreathi Brodkorb 1972 JM14, U93
    `--+--+--Pyrrhocorax Tunstall 1771 BKB15, M02 [incl. Fregilus Cuvier 1816 B94; Fregilidae, Pyrrhocoracidae]
       |  |    |--P. graculus (Linnaeus 1766) (see below for synonymy) M02
       |  |    `--P. pyrrhocorax (Linnaeus 1758) (see below for synonymy) M02
       |  `--+--Dendrocitta Gould 1833 BKB15, B94 [Dendrocittidae]
       |     |    |--D. bayleyi JT12
       |     |    |--D. formosae BKB15
       |     |    |--D. frontalis JT12
       |     |    |--D. himalayensis S89
       |     |    |--D. leucogastra JT12
       |     |    |--D. occipitalis JT12
       |     |    `--D. vagabunda JT12
       |     `--+--+--Platysmurus leucopterus BKB15
       |        |  `--Temnurus Lesson 1831 BKB15, B94 [Temnuridae]
       |        |       `--T. temnurus BKB15
       |        `--Crypsirina Vieillot 1816 BKB15, CC10 [=Cryptorhina Wagler 1827 CC10; Crypsirinidae]
       |             |--C. cucullata JT12
       |             |--C. formosae VP89
       |             |    |--C. f. formosae VP89
       |             |    `--C. f. sinica VP89
       |             |--C. temia BKB15
       |             `--C. varians (Lath. 1790) [=Corvus varians] W66
       `--+--+--Cissa Boie 1826 BKB15, B94 [Cissidae]
          |  |    |--C. chinensis BKB15
          |  |    |--C. hypoleuca JT12
          |  |    |--C. jefferyi HSS13
          |  |    |--C. ornata A61
          |  |    `--C. thalassina JT12
          |  `--Urocissa BKB15
          |       |--U. caerulea JT12
          |       |--U. erythrorhyncha (Gmel. 1788) [=Corvus erythrorhynchus; incl. U. sinensis Dav. & Oust. 1877] M01
          |       |--U. flavirostris JT12
          |       |--U. ornata JT12
          |       `--U. whiteheadi JT12
          `--+--+--Cyanopica BKB15
             |  |    |--C. cooki BKB15
             |  |    `--C. cyanus BKB15
             |  `--Perisoreus BKB15
             |       |--P. canadensis BKB15
             |       `--+--P. infaustus (Linné 1766) BKB15, M01 [=Lanius infaustus M01]
             |          `--P. internigrans BKB15
             `--+--+--Corvus BKB15
                |  `--+--+--Zavattariornis Moltoni 1938 BKB15, B94 [Zavattariornithidae]
                |     |  |    `--Z. stresemanni BKB15
                |     |  `--Pica Brisson 1760 BKB15, M02 [Picacidae]
                |     |       |--+--P. hudsonia BKB15
                |     |       |  `--P. nuttalli BKB15
                |     |       `--P. pica (Linnaeus 1758) BKB15, M02 [=Corvus pica M02]
                |     |            |--P. p. pica I92
                |     |            `--P. p. sericea Gould 1845 I92
                |     `--+--+--Ptilostomus afer BKB15
                |        |  `--Podoces BKB15
                |        |       |--P. biddulphi BKB15
                |        |       |--P. hendersoni BKB15
                |        |       |--P. panderi JT12
                |        |       `--P. pleskei JT12
                |        `--Garrulus Brisson 1760 BKB15, M02
                |             |--G. brandti Eversm. 1874 M01 [=G. glandarius brandtii T89]
                |             |--G. glandarius (Linnaeus 1758) [=Corvus glandarius] M02
                |             |    |--G. g. glandarius VP89
                |             |    `--G. g. sinensis VP89
                |             |--G. lanceolatus JT12
                |             |--G. leucotis S89
                |             `--G. lidthi Bonaparte 1850 I92
                `--+--Cyanolyca BKB15
                   |    |--+--+--C. argentigula BKB15
                   |    |  |  `--C. pumilo BKB15
                   |    |  `--+--C. mirabilis BKB15
                   |    |     `--C. nana JT12
                   |    `--+--+--C. cucullata BKB15
                   |       |  `--C. pulchra BKB15
                   |       `--+--C. armillata BKB15
                   |          `--+--C. turcosa BKB15
                   |             `--C. viridicyanus BKB15
                   `--+--Cyanocorax BKB15
                      `--+--Cyanocitta Strickland 1845 BKB15, B94 [Cyanocittidae]
                         |    |--C. cristata B62
                         |    |    |--C. c. cristata B62
                         |    |    |--C. c. bromia B62
                         |    |    `--C. c. burleighi Bond 1962 B62
                         |    |--C. stelleri BKB15
                         |    `--C. ultramarina FP64
                         `--+--Gymnorhinus Maximillian 1841 BKB15, C84
                            |    `--G. cyanocephalus BKB15
                            `--Aphelocoma Cabanis 1851 BKB15, B94 [Aphelocomidae]
                                 |--A. unicolor BKB15
                                 `--+--+--A. wollweberi BKB15
                                    |  `--+--A. potosina BKB15
                                    |     `--A. ultramarina BKB15
                                    `--+--+--A. coerulescens BKB15
                                       |  `--A. insularis BKB15
                                       `--+--A. californica BKB15
                                          `--+--A. sumichrasti BKB15
                                             `--A. woodhouseii BKB15

Pyrrhocorax graculus (Linnaeus 1766) [=Corvus graculus; incl. P. graculus vetus Kretzoi in Mourer-Chauviré 1975] M02

Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax (Linnaeus 1758) [=Upupa pyrrhocorax; incl. P. pyrrhocorax primigenius Milne-Edwards 1875] M02

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A61] Austin, O. L., Jr. 1961. Birds of the World: A survey of the twenty-seven orders and one hundred and fifty-five families. Paul Hamlyn: London.

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

[B62] Bond, G. M. 1962. A new blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) from Newfoundland. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 75: 205–206.

[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.

[C84] Compagno, L. J. V. 1984. FAO Species Catalogue vol. 4. Sharks of the World: An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 2—Carcharhiniformes. United Nations Development Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: Rome.

[FS55] Felten, H., & J. Steinbacher. 1955. Zur Vogelfauna von El Salvador. Senckenbergiana Biologica 36 (1–2): 9–19.

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

[HSS13] Hirschfeld, E., A. Swash & R. Still. 2013. The World's Rarest Birds. Princeton University Press: Princeton (New Jersey).

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

[JM14] Jarvis, E. D., S. Mirarab, A. J. Aberer, B. Li, P. Houde, C. Li, S. Y. W. Ho, B. C. Faircloth, B. Nabholz, J. T. Howard, A. Suh, C. C. Weber, R. R. de Fonseca, J. Li, F. Zhang, H. Li, L. Zhou, N. Narula, L. Liu, G. Ganapathy, B. Boussau, M. S. Bayzid, V. Zavidovych, S. Subramanian, T. Gabaldón, S. Capella-Gutiérrez, J. Huerta-Cepas, B. Rekepalli, K. Munch, M. Schierup, B. Lindow, W. C. Warren, D. Ray, R. E. Green, M. W. Bruford, X. Zhan, A. Dixon, S. Li, N. Li, Y. Huang, E. P. Derryberry, M. F. Bertelsen, F. H. Sheldon, R. T. Brumfield, C. V. Mello, P. V. Lovell, M. Wirthlin, M. P. Cruz Schneider, F. Prosdocimi, J. A. Samaniego, A. M. Vargas Velazquez, A. Alfaro-Núñez, P. F. Campos, B. Petersen, T. Sitcheritz-Ponten, A. Pas, T. Bailey, P. Scofield, M. Bunce, D. M. Lambert, Q. Zhou, P. Perelman, A. C. Driskell, B. Shapiro, Z. Xiong, Y. Zeng, S. Liu, Z. Li, B. Liu, K. Wu, J. Xiao, X. Yinqi, Q. Zheng, Y. Zhang, H. Yang, J. Wang, L. Smeds, F. E. Rheindt, M. Braun, J. Fjeldså, L. Orlando, F. K. Barker, K. A. Jønsson, W. Johnson, K.-P. Koepfli, S. O'Brien, D. Haussler, O. A. Ryder, C. Rahbek, E. Willerslev, G. R. Graves, T. C. Glenn, J. McCormack, D. Burt, H. Ellegren, P. Alström, S. V. Edwards, A. Stamatakis, D. P. Mindell, J. Cracraft, E. L. Braun, T. Warnow, W. Jun, M. T. P. Gilbert & G. Zhang. 2014. Whole-genome analyses resolve early branches in the tree of life of modern birds. Science 346 (6215): 1320–1331.

[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.

[M01] Madarász, J. 1901. Madarak [Vögel]. 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. 21–39. Victor Hornyánszky: Budapest, and Karl W. Hierseman: Leipzig.

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

[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.

[S13] Sarasin, F. 1913. Die Vögel Neu-Caledoniens und der Loyalty-Inseln. In: Sarasin, F., & J. Roux (eds) Nova Caledonia: Forschungen in Neu-Caledonian und auf den Loyalty-Inseln. A. Zoologie vol. 1 pt 1 pp. 1–78, pls 1–3. C. W. Kreidels Verlag: Wiesbaden.

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

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

[VP89] Viney, C., & K. Phillipps. 1989. Birds of Hong Kong 5^th ed. Government Printer: Hong Kong.

[W66] Walden, A. 1866. Notes on birds collected in Tennasserim and in the Andaman Islands. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 537–556.

Last updated: 19 March 2022.

Lanius

Woodchat shrike Lanius senator, photographed by Lior Kislev.

Belongs within: Corvoidea.

The genus Lanius contains the northern shrikes of Eurasia, Africa and North America. Shrikes are predatory passerines with sharply hooked bills that feed on insects and small vertebrates, and are known for their habit of caching prey by pinning it on thorns.

<==Lanius Linnaeus 1758 M02
    |--L. bucephalus VP89
    |--L. collaris JF06
    |--L. collurio Linnaeus 1758 [incl. L. brachyuros Brehm 1842, L. brachiuros, L. gracilis Brehm 1842] L03
    |--L. collurioides VP89
    |--L. cristatus S89
    |    |--L. c. cristatus VP89
    |    `--L. c. lucionensis VP89
    |--L. erythronotus B66
    |--L. excubitor Linnaeus 1758 [incl. L. major Brehm 1831 nec Gmelin 1788 nec Pallas 1831, L. rapax Brehm 1854] L03
    |--L. excubitorides Swainson 1831 L03
    |--L. excubitoroides [=L. excubitorius] L03
    |    |--L. e. excubitoroides L03
    |    `--L. e. intercedens Neumann 1905 [=L. excubitorius intercedens] L03
    |--L. gubernator Hartlaub 1882 L03
    |--L. isabellinus Ehrenberg 1833 [incl. L. ruficaudus Brehm 1857, L. collurio speculigerus Taczanowski 1874] L03
    |--L. ludovicianus L03
    |    |--L. l. ludovicianus L03
    |    `--L. l. mexicanus Brehm 1854 L03
    |--L. meridionalis L03
    |    |--L. m. meridionalis L03
    |    |--L. m. leucopygos Ehrenberg 1833 [incl. L. leuconotus Brehm & Brehm in Brehm 1854] L03
    |    `--L. m. pallidirostris Cassin 1854 [incl. L. assimilis Brehm & Brehm in Brehm 1854] L03
    |--L. minor Gmelin 1788 [incl. L. graecus Brehm 1855] L03
    |--L. miocaenus Milne-Edwards 1871 M02
    |--L. nasutus S89
    |--L. schach Linnaeus 1758 L03
    |    |--L. s. scach [incl. L. s. hainanus Birckhead 1937] L03
    |    `--L. s. caniceps Blyth 1846 [incl. L. s. kathiawarensis Koelz 1950] L03
    |--L. senator L03
    |    |--L. s. senator L03
    |    `--L. s. niloticus (Bonaparte 1853) [incl. L. paradoxus Brehm 1854] L03
    |--L. somalicus Hartlaub 1859 [incl. L. antinorii mauritii Neumann 1907] L03
    |--L. souzae L03
    |    |--L. s. souzae L03
    |    `--L. s. burigi Chapin 1950 L03
    |--L. sphenocercus VP89
    |--L. tephronotus L03
    |    |--L. t. tephronotus L03
    |    `--L. t. lahulensis Koelz 1950 [incl. Collurio jounotus Hodgson 1844 (n. n.)] L03
    |--L. tigrinus VP89
    |--L. validirostris L03
    |    |--L. v. validirostris L03
    |    `--L. v. tertius Salomonsen 1953 L03
    `--L. vittatus L03
         |--L. v. vittatus L03
         `--L. v. nargianus Vaurie 1955 L03

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B66] Bulger, G. E. 1866. List of birds observed at Wellington, Neilgherry Hills, about 6000 feet above the level of the sea, during the months of April and May, 1866. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 568-571.

[JF06] Jønsson, K. A., & J. Fjeldså. 2006. A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds. Zoologica Scripta 35: 149-186.

[L03] LeCroy, M. 2003. Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 5. Passeriformes: Alaudidae, Hirundinidae, Motacillidae, Campephagidae, Pycnonotidae, Irenidae, Laniidae, Vangidae, Bombycillidae, Dulidae, Cinclidae, Troglodytidae, and Mimidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 278: 1-156.

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

[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 2a 7: 369-438.

[VP89] Viney, C., & K. Phillipps. 1989. Birds of Hong Kong 5^th ed. Government Printer: Hong Kong.

Corvus

Australian raven Corvus coronoides, photographed by Gary.

Belongs within: Corvidae.

The crows of the genus Corvus are large, predominantly black passerine birds. Crows are mostly generalist feeders, and are found in most parts of the world. The largest species (and the largest-bodied of all passerine birds) is the raven Corvus corax, which is found scattered throughout the Palaearctic region. The phylogenetic analysis by Burleigh et al. (2015) also suggests that the nutcrackers Nucifraga are placed within the Corvus clade; these are two species found in the Holarctic region, patterned in contrasting dark and pale colours, with relatively long, slender and pointed bills. Their diet contains a high proportion of conifer seeds, which they also sequester in caches.

<==Corvus Linnaeus 1758 G03 (see below for synonymy)
    |--+--+--C. dauuricus BKB15
    |  |  `--C. monedula Linnaeus 1758 JT12, M02 (see below for synonymy)
    |  `--Nucifraga Brisson 1760 BKB15, M02 [Nucifragidae]
    |       |--N. caryocatactes (Linnaeus 1758) [=Corvus caryocatactes] M02
    |       `--N. columbiana BKB15
    `--+--+--C. frugilegus Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, R85
       |  |    |--C. f. frugilegus VP89
       |  |    `--C. f. pastinator VP89
       |  `--C. hawaiiensis JT12
       `--+--C. ossifragus BKB15
          `--+--+--+--C. brachyrhynchos BKB15
             |  |  `--C. caurinus JT12
             |  `--+--C. cornix BKB15 [=C. corone cornix FP64]
             |      `--C. corone Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, M02 (see below for synonymy)
             `--+--+--C. albicollis BKB15
                |  `--+--C. albus JT12
                |     `--+--*C. corax Linnaeus 1758 G03, JT12, M02 (see below for synonymy)
                |        `--C. cryptoleucus JT12
                `--+--+--C. kubaryi JT12
                   |  |--C. macrorhynchos JT12
                   |  `--C. splendens BKB15
                   |       |--C. s. splendens L81
                   |       |--C. s. insolens L81
                   |       `--C. s. protegatus L81
                   `--+--+--C. nasicus JT12
                      |  `--C. orru JT12
                      `--+--C. coronoides Vigors & Horsfield 1827 JT12, WS48 (see below for synonymy)
                         `--+--C. moriorum Forbes 1892 [=*Palaeocorax moriorum] G03
                            `--C. antipodum (Forbes 1893) [=Palaeocorax antipodum, C. moriorum antipodum] G03
                                 |--C. a. antipodum G03
                                 `--C. a. pycrafti Gill 2003 G03

Corvus incertae sedis:
  C. bennetti North 1901 [incl. C. bennetti bonhoti Mathews 1912, C. cecilae marngli Mathews 1912] WS48
  C. cafer Scl66
  C. capensis JT12
  C. cecilae Mathews 1912 WS48 (see below for synonymy)
  C. crassirostris Rüppell 1836 S05
  C. culminatus B66
  C. edithae JT12
  C. enca JT12
  C. florensis JT12
  C. fuscicapillus JT12
  C. hungaricus Lambrecht 1916 M02
  C. imparatus JT12
  C. jamaicensis JT12
  C. larteti (Milne-Edwards 1871) JM14, M02 [=*Miocorvus larteti M02]
  C. leucognaphalus SWK87
  C. levaillantii JT12
  C. meeki JT12
  C. mellori G03
  C. minutus JT12 [=C. palmarum minutus MS55]
  C. moneduloides G03
  C. palmarum MS55
  C. pumilis SWK87
  C. rhipidurus JT12
  C. ruficollis JT12
  C. scapulatus [incl. C. madagascariensis] Sch66
  C. sinaloae JT12
  C. tasmanicus M03
    |--C. t. tasmanicus M03
    `--C. t. boreus M03
  C. torquatus VP89
  C. tristis JT12
  C. tropicus FP64
  C. typicus JT12
  C. unicolor HSS13
  C. validus JT12
  C. woodfordi JT12

Corvus Linnaeus 1758 G03 [incl. Gymnocorvus Lesson 1831 B94, Miocorax Lambrecht 1933 M02, Miocorvus Lambrecht 1933 M02, Palaeocorax Forbes in Anon. 1892 G03, Trypanocorax Bonaparte 1854 B94; Gymnocorvidae, Trypanocoracidae]

Corvus cecilae Mathews 1912 WS48 [=C. coronoides cecilae WS48, C. orru cecilae M03; incl. C. cecilae hartogi Mathews 1920 WS48, C. cecilae probleema Mathews 1923 WS48]

*Corvus corax Linnaeus 1758 G03, JT12, M02 [incl. C. corax antecorax Mourer-Chauviré 1975 M02, C. fossilis Giebel 1847 M02, C. pliocaenus janossyi Mourer-Chauviré 1975 M02]

Corvus corone Linnaeus 1758 BKB15, M02 [incl. C. betfianus Kretzoi 1962 M02, C. cornix fossilis Giebel 1847 non C. fossilis Giebel 1847 M02, Numenius pliocaenus Portis 1889 M02, C. pliocaenus M02, C. praecorax Depéret 1892 M02, C. simionescui Kessler 1979 M02]

Corvus coronoides Vigors & Horsfield 1827 JT12, WS48 [incl. C. australis S13, C. coronoides perplexus Mathews 1912 WS48]

Corvus monedula Linnaeus 1758 JT12, M02 [incl. Pica pica major Jánossy 1972 M02, C. moravicus Mlíkovský 1995 M02]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B66] Beavan, R. C. 1866. Extracts from a letter addressed to the Secretary relating his trip to Zwagaben, and discovery of Nemorhaedus sumatrensis. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 2–4.

[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.

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

[G03] Gill, B. J. 2003. Osteometry and systematics of the extinct New Zealand ravens (Aves: Corvidae: Corvus). Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 1 (1): 43–58.

[HSS13] Hirschfeld, E., A. Swash & R. Still. 2013. The World's Rarest Birds. Princeton University Press: Princeton (New Jersey).

[JM14] Jarvis, E. D., S. Mirarab, A. J. Aberer, B. Li, P. Houde, C. Li, S. Y. W. Ho, B. C. Faircloth, B. Nabholz, J. T. Howard, A. Suh, C. C. Weber, R. R. de Fonseca, J. Li, F. Zhang, H. Li, L. Zhou, N. Narula, L. Liu, G. Ganapathy, B. Boussau, M. S. Bayzid, V. Zavidovych, S. Subramanian, T. Gabaldón, S. Capella-Gutiérrez, J. Huerta-Cepas, B. Rekepalli, K. Munch, M. Schierup, B. Lindow, W. C. Warren, D. Ray, R. E. Green, M. W. Bruford, X. Zhan, A. Dixon, S. Li, N. Li, Y. Huang, E. P. Derryberry, M. F. Bertelsen, F. H. Sheldon, R. T. Brumfield, C. V. Mello, P. V. Lovell, M. Wirthlin, M. P. Cruz Schneider, F. Prosdocimi, J. A. Samaniego, A. M. Vargas Velazquez, A. Alfaro-Núñez, P. F. Campos, B. Petersen, T. Sitcheritz-Ponten, A. Pas, T. Bailey, P. Scofield, M. Bunce, D. M. Lambert, Q. Zhou, P. Perelman, A. C. Driskell, B. Shapiro, Z. Xiong, Y. Zeng, S. Liu, Z. Li, B. Liu, K. Wu, J. Xiao, X. Yinqi, Q. Zheng, Y. Zhang, H. Yang, J. Wang, L. Smeds, F. E. Rheindt, M. Braun, J. Fjeldså, L. Orlando, F. K. Barker, K. A. Jønsson, W. Johnson, K.-P. Koepfli, S. O'Brien, D. Haussler, O. A. Ryder, C. Rahbek, E. Willerslev, G. R. Graves, T. C. Glenn, J. McCormack, D. Burt, H. Ellegren, P. Alström, S. V. Edwards, A. Stamatakis, D. P. Mindell, J. Cracraft, E. L. Braun, T. Warnow, W. Jun, M. T. P. Gilbert & G. Zhang. 2014. Whole-genome analyses resolve early branches in the tree of life of modern birds. Science 346 (6215): 1320–1331.

[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.

[MS55] Mertens, R., & J. Steinbacher. 1955. Die im Senckenberg-Museum vorhandenen Arten ausgestorbener, aussterbender oder seltener Vögel. Senckenbergiana Biologica 36 (3–4): 241–265.

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

[M03] Morcombe, M. 2003. Field Guide to Australian Birds 2^nd ed. Steve Parish Publishing.

[R85] Robertson, C. J. R. (ed.) 1985. Reader’s Digest Complete Book of New Zealand Birds. Reader’s Digest: Sydney.

[S13] Sarasin, F. 1913. Die Vögel Neu-Caledoniens und der Loyalty-Inseln. In: Sarasin, F., & J. Roux (eds) Nova Caledonia: Forschungen in Neu-Caledonian und auf den Loyalty-Inseln. A. Zoologie vol. 1 Heft I pp. 1–78, pl. 1–3. C. W. Kreidels Verlag: Wiesbaden.

[Sch66] Schlegel, H. 1866. Communication from, on mammals and birds collected in Madagascar. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 419–426.

[Scl66] Sclater, P. L. 1866. Report on birds collected at Windvogelberg, South Africa, by Capt. G. E. Bulger, C. M. Z. S. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 21–23.

[SWK87] Snyder, N. F. R., J. W. Wiley & C. B. Kepler. 1987. The Parrots of Luquillo: Natural history and conservation of the Puerto Rican parrot. Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology: Los Angeles.

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

[VP89] Viney, C., & K. Phillipps. 1989. Birds of Hong Kong 5^th ed. Government Printer: Hong Kong.

[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.

Fringillidae

Brambling Fringilla montifringilla, photographed by Mark Gurney.

Belongs within: Passerida.
Contains: Carduelinae, Euphonia.

The Fringillidae, finches, are a family of mostly granivorous birds found in Eurasia, Africa and the Americas. Though often brownish or greenish in their base coloration, many fringillid finches are colorfully marked. Some tropical fringillids, the Neotropical genera Euphonia and Chlorophonia, and the Hawaiian honeycreepers of the Drepanidini, include particularly colorful species that have become frugivorous or nectarivorous rather than granivorous. Chlorophonia is a genus of mostly green birds with yellow underparts (Hilty 2011). The chaffinches of the genus Fringilla, found in Eurasia and northern Africa, differ from the cardueline finches in their relatively short upper bills and lack of a crop; they also feed nestlings on insects rather than seeds.

<==Fringillidae [Fringilladae]
    |--+--Carduelinae JT12
    |  `--+--Euphonia JT12
    |     `--Chlorophonia Bonaparte 1851 BKB15, H11
    |          |--C. callophrys (Cabanis 1861) [=Triglyphidia callophrys] H11
    |          |--C. cyanea (Thunberg 1822) [=Pipra cyanea] H11
    |          |    |--C. c. cyanea H11
    |          |    |--C. c. frontalis (Sclater 1851) H11
    |          |    |--C. c. intensa Zimmer 1943 H11
    |          |    |--C. c. longipennis (du Bus de Gisignies 1855) H11
    |          |    |--C. c. minuscula Hellmayr 1922 H11
    |          |    |--C. c. psittacina Bangs 1902 H11
    |          |    `--C. c. roraimae Salvin & Godman 1884 H11
    |          |--C. flavirostris Sclater 1861 [incl. C. flavirostris boehmi, C. flavirostris minima] H11
    |          |--C. occipitalis (du Bus de Gisignies 1847) [=Euphonia occipitalis] H11
    |          `--C. pyrrhophrys (Sclater 1851) [=Euphonia pyrrhophrys] H11
    `--+--Carpospiza brachydactyla BKB15
       `--Fringilla Linnaeus 1758 JT12, CC10 [Fringillinae, Fringillini]
            |  i. s.: F. amandava Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. angolensis Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. brasiliana Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. butyracea Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. chinensis Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. lutensis Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. melancholica Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. melba Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. sylvatica Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. tristis Linnaeus 1758 L58
            |         F. trochanteria Giebel 1847 M02
            |--F. montifringilla Linnaeus 1758 JT12, CC10
            `--+--*F. coelebs Linnaeus 1758 CC10, JT12, CC10 [=F. caelebs (l. c.) CC10]
               |    |--F. c. coelebs CC10
               |    `--F. c. gengleri Kleinschmidt 1909 CC10
               `--F. teydea JT12

Fringillidae incertae sedis:
  Chaunoproctus ferreorostris (Vigors 1829) WBSJ82, I92
  Coturniculus peruanus SS66
  Rhynchostruthus JT12
    |--R. louisae JT12
    |--R. percivali JT12
    `--R. socotranus JT12
  Neospiza concolor JT12
  Callacanthis burtoni JT12
  Zamelodia ludoviciana S18
  Astragalinus psaltria S18
    |--A. p. psaltria S18
    `--A. p. croceus S18

*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.

[H11] Hilty, S. L. 2011. Family Thraupidae (tanagers). In: Hoyo, J. del, A. Elliott & D. A. Christie (eds) Handbook of the Birds of the World vol. 16. Tanagers to New World Blackbirds pp. 46–329. Lynx Edicions: Barcelona.

[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.

[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.

[SS66] Sclater, P. L., & O. Salvin. 1866. Catalogue of birds collected by Mr. E. Bartlett on the River Uyacali, Eastern Peru, with notes and descriptions of new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 175–201.

[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.

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

Last updated: 7 July 2019.

Motacillidae

Grey wagtail Motacilla cinerea, photographed by Phil Armitage.

Belongs within: Passeroidea.
Contains: Anthus, Motacilla flava.

The Motacillidae is a family of insectivorous, generally ground-feeding passerines, containing the pipits (Anthus), wagtails (Motacilla and Dendronanthus indicus) and longclaws (Macronyx). Motacillids have pointed wings with nine primaries, and long slender legs with partly scaled tarsi (Austin 1961). The wagtails get their name from their habit of continually bobbing their tails up and down; some wagtails are also strikingly patterned.

<==Motacillidae
    |--Dendronanthus indicus WBSJ82, VP89
    |--Tmetothylacus tenellus JT12
    |--Anthus JF06
    `--Motacilla Linnaeus 1758 JF06, M02
         |  i. s.: M. grandis WBSJ82
         |         M. humata Milne-Edwards 1871 M02
         |         M. major Milne-Edwards 1871 M02
         |         M. samveasnae JT12
         |--+--M. flaviventris JF06
         |  `--+--M. capensis JF06
         |     `--M. clara JF06
         |          |--M. c. clara L03
         |          `--M. c. chapini Amadon 1954 L03
         `--+--M. aguimp JT12
            `--+--+--M. cinerea Tunstall 1771 JT12, L03
               |  |    |--M. c. cinerea [incl. M. boarula canariensis Hartert 1901] L03
               |  |    `--M. c. patriciae Vaurie 1957 L03
               |  `--M. madaraspatensis JT12
               `--+--+--M. alba Linnaeus 1758 JT12, L03
                  |  |    |--M. a. alba [incl. M. fasciata Brehm 1855 non Bechstein 1795] L03
                  |  |    |--M. a. baicalensis M03
                  |  |    |--M. a. leucopsis M03
                  |  |    |--M. a. ocularis M03
                  |  |    `--M. a. personater VP89
                  |  `--M. lugens JF06 [=M. alba lugens M03]
                  `--+--M. citreola JT12
                     `--M. flava JT12

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

Austin, O. L., Jr. 1961. Birds of the World: A survey of the twenty-seven orders and one hundred and fifty-five families. Paul Hamlyn: 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.

[JF06] Jønsson, K. A., & J. Fjeldså. 2006. A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds. Zoologica Scripta 35: 149-186.

[L03] LeCroy, M. 2003. Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 5. Passeriformes: Alaudidae, Hirundinidae, Motacillidae, Campephagidae, Pycnonotidae, Irenidae, Laniidae, Vangidae, Bombycillidae, Dulidae, Cinclidae, Troglodytidae, and Mimidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 278: 1-156.

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

[M03] Morcombe, M. 2003. Field Guide to Australian Birds, 2^nd ed. Steve Parish Publishing.

[VP89] Viney, C., & K. Phillipps. 1989. Birds of Hong Kong 5^th ed. Government Printer: Hong Kong.

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