Macrosphenidae

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African warblers
Sphenoeacus afer.jpg
Cape grassbird
Sphenoeacus afer
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Superfamily: Sylvioidea
Family: Macrosphenidae
Wolters, 1983
Genera

See text

The African warblers are a newly erected family Macrosphenidae, of African songbirds. Most of the species were formerly placed in the Old World warbler family Sylviidae, although one species, the rockrunner, was placed in the babbler family, Timaliidae. A series of molecular studies of the Old World warblers and other bird families in the superfamily Sylvioidea (which includes the larks, swallows and tits) found that the African warblers were not part of Sylviidae but were instead an early (basal) offshoot of the entire clade Sylvioidea. [1] [2] Some taxonomic authorities place the entire family Hyliidae here.

Contents

Taxonomy

The family name (as the subfamily Macrospheninae) was introduced by the German ornithologist Hans Wolters in 1983 but was not formally defined until 2012. [3] [4] [5] The family contains 18 species divided into 6 genera. [6]

The genus level phylogeny shown below is based on a genetic study by Silke Fregin and collaborators that was published in 2012. The rockrunner Achaetops pycnopygius was not included in the study. [5]

Macrosphenidae

Macrosphenus – longbills (5 species)

Sphenoeacus – Cape grassbird

Melocichla – Moustached grass warbler

Cryptillas – Victorin's warbler

Sylvietta – crombecs (9 species)

Distribution and habitat

The African warblers inhabit a range of habitats in sub-Saharan Africa. These range from primary rainforest to forest edge and open woodland habitats for the longbills, wooded savanna to arid scrubland and bushland in the crombecs, rocky arid scree areas and grassland for the rockrunner, and grassland for the moustached grass warbler and Cape grassbird. The family is overwhelmingly non-migratory, although the moustached grass warbler and the northern crombec both make some localised movements in West Africa related to the rainy season. [7]

Description

The African warblers range in size from the smaller crombecs, which measure 8 cm (3.1 in) in length and weigh as little as 6.5 g (0.23 oz), to the Cape grassbird, which measures 19–23 cm (7.5–9.1 in) in length and the moustached grass warbler which weighs 29–40 g (1.0–1.4 oz). There is considerable difference in appearance between the genera; for example, the two grass warblers and Victorin's warbler possess long graduated tails, whereas the crombecs have tails which barely extend beyond the tail coverts and folded wings. [7]

Behaviour

The African warblers are insect eaters, and take a range of insect prey. The longbills and crombecs feed in the canopy and in bushes, either as singles or pairs and sometimes in small groups, whereas the other species are more terrestrial in their habits. Where two species co-occur, such as the red-faced crombec and the long-billed crombec over parts of their range, niche partitioning occurs, with one species feeding in the canopy and the other species feeding lower down in the bushes and trees. Some species of both crombec and longbill have been reported to join mixed-species feeding flocks. [7]

Breeding is seasonal and usually timed to coincide with the end of the dry season and beginning of the rainy season; in species with large ranges this can lead to considerable variation as to the exact timing. Information is lacking in many species, but for those that have been studied the African warblers are territorial and monogamous. Nest design varies within the family; the crombecs construct deep pocket-shaped nests suspended from a branch; whereas the Victorin's warbler, Cape grassbird and moustached grass warbler construct cup nests weaved from grass. [7]

Status and conservation

The majority of this family are considered to be fairly secure and are listed by the IUCN as least concern. One species, the Pulitzer's longbill, is listed as endangered. This species is endemic to forests found on escarpments in western Angola, a habitat threatened by forest clearance and the spread of slash-and-burn agriculture, and the population is thought to number less than a thousand and is still declining. Another potential concern is Chapin's crombec, which is either a species or a subspecies of the white-browed crombec. The status of this bird is uncertain, as conflict has prevented surveys in its range, but it may be extinct.

Species

Long-billed crombec Crombec Longbilled 2011 05 16 09 Alan Manson Prieska.jpg
Long-billed crombec

Related Research Articles

Old World warblers are a large group of birds formerly grouped together in the bird family Sylviidae. They are not closely related to the New World warblers. The family held over 400 species in over 70 genera, and were the source of much taxonomic confusion. Two families were split out initially, the cisticolas into Cisticolidae and the kinglets into Regulidae. In the past ten years they have been the subject of much research and many species are now placed into other families, including the Acrocephalidae, Cettiidae, Phylloscopidae, and Megaluridae. In addition some species have been moved into existing families or have not yet had their placement fully resolved. A smaller number of warblers, together with some babblers formerly placed in the family Timaliidae and the parrotbills, are retained in a much smaller family Sylviidae.

<i>Bradypterus</i> Genus of birds

Bradypterus is a genus of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers") in the newly recognized grass warbler family (Locustellidae). They were formerly placed in the Sylviidae, which at that time was a wastebin taxon for the warbler-like Sylvioidea. The range of this genus extends through the warm regions from Africa around the Indian Ocean and far into Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Passerida</span> Clade of birds

Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri. While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorder, Corvida, is not a monophyletic grouping, the Passerida as a distinct clade are widely accepted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape grassbird</span> Species of bird

The Cape grassbird or Cape grass warbler is an African warbler found in southern Africa. It is the only species placed in the genus Sphenoeacus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long-billed crombec</span> Species of bird

The long-billed crombec or Cape crombec is an African warbler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockrunner</span> Species of bird

The rockrunner, also known as the Damara rock-jumper, is a species of African warbler, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Achaetops. It is found in Angola and Namibia.

<i>Macrosphenus</i> Genus of birds

Macrosphenus is a genus of African warblers, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae. It is one of two genera in that family known as longbills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little grassbird</span> Species of bird

The little grassbird is a species of Old World warbler in the family Locustellidae. It is found in Australia and in West Papua, Indonesia. These sexually monomorphic birds are found in reed beds, rushes, lignum swamps and salt marshes of Southeastern Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Striated grassbird</span> Species of bird

The striated grassbird is an "Old World warbler" species in the family Locustellidae. It was formerly placed in the family Sylviidae. It is now the only species placed in the genus Megalurus.

<i>Schoenicola</i> Genus of birds

Schoenicola is a genus of Old World warbler in the family Locustellidae. There are two species, both from peninsular India. The genus has been placed in the subfamily Megalurinae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crombec</span> Genus of birds

Sylvietta, the crombecs, is a genus of African warblers. Formerly placed in the massively paraphyletic family Sylviidae, it is now considered to belong to a newly recognized family found only in Africa, Macrosphenidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-browed crombec</span> Species of bird

The white-browed crombec is a species of African warbler, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae. The enigmatic Chapin's crombec might be a distinct species, or a subspecies Sylvietta leucophrys chapini of the present species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-capped crombec</span> Species of bird

The red-capped crombec is a species of African warbler, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Locustellidae</span> Family of birds

Locustellidae is a newly recognized family of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers"), formerly placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" family. It contains the grass warblers, grassbirds, and the Bradypterus "bush warblers". These birds occur mainly in Eurasia, Africa, and the Australian region. The family name is sometimes given as Megaluridae, but Locustellidae has priority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Streaked scrub warbler</span> Species of bird

The streaked scrub warbler, also known simply as the scrub warbler, is a small passerine bird. It is the only species placed in the genus Scotocerca. It is found in northern Africa and south-western Asia. It is a bird of desert fringes, frequenting scrubby areas, ravines and gorges, and is mainly resident, although local movements can occur outside the breeding season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sylvioidea</span> Superfamily of birds

Sylvioidea is a superfamily of passerine birds, one of at least three major clades within the Passerida along with the Muscicapoidea and Passeroidea. It contains about 1300 species including the Old World warblers, Old World babblers, swallows, larks and bulbuls. Members of the clade are found worldwide, but fewer species are present in the Americas.

<i>Horornis</i> Genus of birds

Horornis is a genus of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers") which make up the core of the newly recognized family Cettiidae. They were formerly placed in the Sylviidae, which at that time was a wastebin taxon for the warbler-like Sylvioidea. The range of this genus occurs from southeast Asia throughout the western Pacific. The most recently described species is the Bougainville bush warbler from Bougainville Island.

<i>Phyllergates</i> Genus of birds

The species of tailorbirds listed below are small birds of the genus Phyllergates . They were previously placed in the Old World warbler family Sylviidae. However, recent research suggests they more likely belong in the Cettiidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pellorneidae</span> Family of birds

The jungle babblers are a family, Pellorneidae, of mostly Old World passerine birds belonging to the superfamily Sylvioidea. They are quite diverse in size and coloration, and usually characterised by soft, fluffy plumage and a tail on average the length of their body, or longer. These birds are found in tropical zones, with the greatest biodiversity in Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

References

  1. 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 B. 272 (1565): 849–858. doi:10.1098/rspb.2004.2997. PMC   1599865 . PMID   15888418.
  2. Johansson, Ulf; Jon Fjeldså; Rauri C.K. Bowie (2008). "Phylogenetic relationships within Passerida (Aves: Passeriformes): A review and a new molecular phylogeny based on three nuclear intron markers" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 48 (3): 858–87. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2008.05.029. PMID   18619860.
  3. Wolters, Hans E. (1983). Die Vögel Europas im System der Vögel : eine Übersicht (in German). Baden-Baden: Biotropic Verlag. ISBN   978-3-922465-04-1.
  4. Bock, Walter J. (1994). History and Nomenclature of Avian Family-Group Names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. Vol. 222. New York: American Museum of Natural History. pp. 152, 265. hdl:2246/830.
  5. 1 2 Fregin, S.; Haase, M.; Olsson, U.; Alström, P. (2012). "New insights into family relationships within the avian superfamily Sylvioidea (Passeriformes) based on seven molecular markers". BMC Evolutionary Biology. 12 (1): 157. Bibcode:2012BMCEE..12..157F. doi: 10.1186/1471-2148-12-157 . PMC   3462691 . PMID   22920688.
  6. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2023). "Cupwings, crombecs, cettiid bush warblers, Streaked Scrub Warbler, yellow flycatchers, hylias". IOC World Bird List Version 13.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Franz Bairlein, Per Alström, Raül Aymí, Peter Clement, Andrzej Dyrcz, Gabriel Gargallo, Frank Hawkins, Steve Madge, David Pearson & Lars Svensson "Family Sylviidae (Old World Warblers)" in del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006). Handbook of the Birds of the World.Volume 11: Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Lynx Edicions. ISBN   84-96553-06-X.