| Convex-billed cowbird Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Icteridae |
| Genus: | † Pandanaris Miller, 1947 |
| Species: | †P. convexa |
| Binomial name | |
| †Pandanaris convexa Miller, 1947 | |
The convex-billed cowbird (Pandanaris convexa) is an extinct species of bird in the family Icteridae, described in 1947 by Alden H. Miller. It is the only member of its genus, Pandanaris. [1]
Pandanaris convexa has an upper mandible (7.0 mm in length) similar to that of the extant cowbirds in the genus Molothrus , though its narial opening is approximately 30% larger. In addition, Miller found that the species' internarial bridge was entirely different from other cowbirds and blackbirds. The species has a distinct "even" curvature of its culmen that is not found in any other icterid. [1]
Based on fossil evidence, the convex-billed cowbird had a large distribution throughout the Americas. The first remains were from the La Brea Tar Pits in California, and remains have also been found in Florida. Other remains have also been found at San Clemente de Térapa in the Mexican state of Sonora, mixed with the remains of extant icterid species such as the red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) and orchard oriole (Icterus spurius). More remains have been found as far south as the Talara Tar Seeps in northwestern Peru. [2] [3] [4]
Along with many other birds of the late Quaternary, the convex-billed cowbird likely co-evolved with Pleistocene megafauna, inhabiting the grassland habitats that were shaped by these species and feeding on the insects that their foraging stirred up. With the eventual extinction of the megafauna, Pandanaris was unable to adapt to the altered conditions and eventually went extinct. The other still-extant icterid species that also inhabited the same areas, such as the red-winged blackbirds and orchard orioles, may have also been extirpated from these altered habitats, but the species as a whole were able to tolerate them, with some populations surviving in other areas and later recolonizing the altered habitats they were previously extirpated from. In contrast, Pandanaris may have been so wholly dependent on megafaunal communities that it could not tolerate the altered habitats and went fully went extinct throughout its range. [2] [4]
Icterids or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae, of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. The family contains 108 species and is divided into 30 genera. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. The species in the family vary widely in size, shape, behavior, and coloration. The name, meaning "jaundiced ones" comes from the Ancient Greek ikteros via the Latin ictericus. This group includes the New World blackbirds, New World orioles, the bobolink, meadowlarks, grackles, cowbirds, oropendolas, and caciques.
The brown-headed cowbird is a small, obligate brood parasitic icterid native to temperate and subtropical North America. It is a permanent resident in the southern parts of its range; northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico in winter, returning to their summer habitat around March or April.
The Baltimore oriole is a small icterid blackbird common in eastern North America as a migratory breeding bird. It received its name from the resemblance of the male's colors to those on the coat-of-arms of 17-th century Lord Baltimore. Observations of interbreeding between the Baltimore oriole and the western Bullock's oriole Icterus bullockii, led to both being classified as a single species, called the northern oriole, from 1973 to 1995. Research by James Rising, a professor of zoology at the University of Toronto, and others showed that the two birds actually did not interbreed significantly.
Bullock's oriole is a small New World blackbird. At one time, this species and the Baltimore oriole were considered to be a single species, the northern oriole. This bird is named after William Bullock, an English amateur naturalist.
The hooded oriole is a medium-sized New World oriole. The male of this species ranges in color from a bright orange to a paler yellow, with a black back, face, tail and bib, with the wing containing two white bars. The female is more of an olive color with some yellow accents.
New World orioles are a group of birds in the genus Icterus of the blackbird family. Unrelated to Old World orioles of the family Oriolidae, they are strikingly similar in size, diet, behavior, and strongly contrasting plumage. As a result, the two have been given the same vernacular name.
Cowbirds are birds belonging to the genus Molothrus in the family Icteridae. They are of New World origin, and are obligate brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other species.
The giant cowbird is a large passerine bird in the New World family Icteridae. It breeds from southern Mexico south to northern Argentina, and on Trinidad and Tobago. It may have relatively recently colonised the latter island. It is a brood parasite and lays its eggs in the nests of other birds.
The Scott's oriole is a medium-sized icterid.
The streak-backed oriole is a medium-sized species of passerine bird from the icterid family. It is native to Central America and Mexico and is an occasional visitor to the United States.
The bronzed cowbird, once known as the red-eyed cowbird, is a small icterid.
Euphagus is a small genus of American blackbirds. It contains two extant species: Brewer's blackbird, Euphagus cyanocephalus, and rusty blackbird E. carolinus.
The Montserrat oriole is a medium-sized black-and-yellow icterid.
Audubon's oriole, formerly known as the black-headed oriole, is a New World passerine inhabiting the forests and thickets of southeastern Texas and the Mexican coast. It is the only species to have a black hood and yellow body. It is divided into four subspecies and two allopatric breeding ranges. The westernmost range extends from Nayarit south to southern Oaxaca, whereas the eastern range stretches from the lower Rio Grande valley to northern Querétaro. The most common in the western range are the subspecies I. g. dickeyae and I. g. nayaritensis; I. g. graduacauda and I. g. audubonii can be found in the eastern range. Like most Central American birds, it is not a migratory species and does not display significant sexual dimorphism. DNA analysis of the ND2 and cyt-b genes strongly suggests that I. graduacauda is most closely related to I. chrysater, the yellow-backed oriole. It is a member of the genus Icterus and therefore should not be confused with the Old World orioles.
The Martinique oriole is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is endemic to Martinique, French West Indies. Martinique is a part of the Lesser Antilles, and is located in the Eastern Caribbean.
The Saint Lucia oriole is a species of bird, in the family Icteridae and genus Icterus. It is endemic to Saint Lucia.
The Jamaican oriole is a species of bird in the family Icteridae.
The Bahama oriole is a species of songbird in the New World blackbird family Icteridae. It is endemic to the Bahamas, and listed as endangered by the IUCN Red List.
The Puerto Rican oriole is a species of bird in the family Icteridae, and genus Icterus or New World blackbirds. This species is a part of a subgroup of orioles that includes the North American orchard oriole, Icterus spurius, and the hooded oriole, Icterus cucullatus.