Melaenornis

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Melaenornis
Southern Black-Flycatcher (Melaenornis pammelaina).jpg
Southern black flycatcher (Melaenornis pammelaina)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Muscicapidae
Tribe: Muscicapini
Genus: Melaenornis
G.R. Gray, 1840
Type species
Melasoma edolioides [1]
Swainson, 1937
Species

see text

Melaenornis is a genus of small passerine birds in the large family Muscicapidae commonly known as the Old World flycatchers. They are restricted to sub-Saharan Africa.

Contents

Taxonomy

The genus Melaenornis was introduced in 1840 by the English zoologist George Gray. It was a replacement name for Melasoma that had been introduced in 1837 by William Swainson with the northern black flycatcher as the type species. [2] Melasoma was pre-occupied by "Melasoma Dillwyn" that had been introduced in 1831 by James Stephens for a genus of insects. [3] [4] The name Melaenornis combines the Ancient Greek melas, melaina meaning "black" with ornis meaning "bird". [5]

Species

The genus contains the following seven species: [6]

This genus formerly included fewer species. The results of a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2010 led to a reorganization of the Old World flycatchers family in which the four species in Bradornis and the single species in Sigelus were merged into Melaenornis. [6] [7] The genus formerly included the pale flycatcher and the chat flycatcher. Based on a phylogenetic study published in 2023, they were moved to the resurrected genus Agricola . [8] [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old World flycatcher</span> Family of birds

The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World, with the exception of several vagrants and two species, bluethroat and northern wheatear, found also in North America. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing. The family is relatively large and includes 351 species which are divided into 54 genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forktail</span> Genus of birds (Enicurus)

The forktails are small insectivorous birds in the genus Enicurus. They were formerly placed in the thrush family, Turdidae, but are now treated as part of the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae. Their common name derives from their long forked tail.

<i>Brachypteryx</i> Genus of birds

Brachypteryx is a genus of passerine birds in the family Muscicapidae containing ten species known as shortwings, that occurs in southeast Asia.

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

The mountain wheatear or mountain chat is a small insectivorous passerine bird that is endemic to southwestern Africa.

<i>Bradornis</i> Genus of birds

Bradornis is a genus of small passerine birds in the large family Muscicapidae commonly known as the Old World flycatchers. They are restricted to sub-Saharan Africa.

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

The chat flycatcher is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that is native to southern Africa.

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

The Marico flycatcher or Mariqua flycatcher is a passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that is found in areas of southern Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African grey flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The African grey flycatcher, grayish flycatcher, or large flycatcher is a passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that occurs in parts of East Africa.

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

The pale flycatcher is a passerine bird of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae, found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The mountain robin-chat is a species of bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-bellied robin-chat</span> Species of bird

The white-bellied robin-chat is a species of bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is found in western Cameroon, Bioko and the Albertine Rift montane forests. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abyssinian slaty flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The Abyssinian slaty flycatcher, also known as Abyssinian flycatcher, Abyssinian black flycatcher or Abyssinian chocolate flycatcher, is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae, the Old World flycatchers. It is often placed in the genus Dioptrornis. It is native to Africa, where it occurs in Eritrea and Ethiopia.

<i>Fraseria</i> Genus of birds

Fraseria is a genus of passerine birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that are found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

<i>Phoenicurus</i> Genus of birds

Phoenicurus is a genus of passerine birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae, native to Europe, Asia and Africa. They are named redstarts from their orange-red tails. They are small insectivores, the males mostly brightly coloured in various combinations of red, blue, white, and black, the females light brown with a red tail. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2010 led to a reorganization of the Old World flycatchers family in which the two species in Rhyacornis and the single species in Chaimarrornis were merged into Phoenicurus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slaty-backed jungle flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The slaty-backed jungle flycatcher is a species of birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is endemic to the Philippines. The specific epithet honours the British zoological collector Walter Goodfellow. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is becoming rare due to habitat loss.

<i>Tarsiger</i> Genus of birds

Tarsiger is a genus of six species of birds in the family Muscicapidae. They are small, mostly brightly coloured insectivorous birds native to Asia and northeastern Europe; four of the six species are confined to the Sino-Himalayan mountain system. The genus has sometimes been included within the related genus Luscinia, but the species have been found to form a distinct monophyletic group.

<i>Calliope</i> (genus) Genus of birds

Calliope is a genus of passerine birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.

<i>Vauriella</i> Genus of birds

Vauriella is a genus of birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that occur in Borneo and the Philippines.

<i>Dessonornis</i> Genus of birds

The Dessonornis is a genus of birds in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that are found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

<i>Agricola</i> (bird) Genus of birds

Agricola is a genus of small passerine birds in the large family Muscicapidae commonly known as the Old World flycatchers. They are restricted to sub-Saharan Africa.

References

  1. "Muscicapidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  2. Gray, George Robert (1840). A List of the Genera of Birds : with an Indication of the Typical Species of Each Genus. London: R. and J.E. Taylor. p. 35.
  3. Stephens, James Francis (1831). Illustrations of British entomology; or, A synopsis of indigenous insects: containing their generic and specific distinctions. Vol. 4: Mandibulata. London: Baldwin and Cradock. p. 349.
  4. Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1986). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 11. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 296.
  5. Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 246. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  6. 1 2 3 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "Chats, Old World flycatchers". IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  7. Sangster, G.; Alström, P.; Forsmark, E.; Olsson, U. (2010). "Multi-locus phylogenetic analysis of Old World chats and flycatchers reveals extensive paraphyly at family, subfamily and genus level (Aves: Muscicapidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 57 (1): 380–392. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2010.07.008. PMID   20656044.
  8. Zhao, M.; Gordon Burleigh, J.; Olsson, U.; Alström, P.; Kimball, R.T. (2023). "A near-complete and time-calibrated phylogeny of the Old World flycatchers, robins and chats (Aves, Muscicapidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 178: 107646. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107646 . PMID   36265831.

Further reading