Sericulus

Sericulus
Regent bowerbird (Sericulus chrysocephalus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Ptilonorhynchidae
Genus:	Sericulus Swainson, 1825
Type species
Meliphaga chrysocephalus Lewin, 1808

Sericulus is a genus of brightly coloured passerine birds belonging to the bowerbird family Ptilonorhynchidae. They are found in New Guinea and eastern Australia.

Birds in this genus build "avenue-type" bowers which consist of two parallel walls made of vertical sticks and pieces of grass. ^[1]

Taxonomy

The genus Sericulus was introduced in 1825 by the English zoologist William Swainson for the species Meliphaga chrysocephalus, the regent bowerbird, that had been formally described by John Lewin in 1808. Meliphaga chrysocephalus therefore becomes the type species by monotypy. ^{[2] [3]} The genus name is a diminutive of the Ancient Greek σηρικον/sērikon meaning "silk". ^[4]

Species

The genus contains four species. ^[5]

Image	Name	Common name	Distribution
	Sericulus aureus	Masked bowerbird	montane Bird's Head and Neck (northwest New Guinea) to east central New Guinea
	Sericulus ardens	Flame bowerbird	south central New Guinea
	Sericulus bakeri	Fire-maned bowerbird	Adelbert Range (northeast New Guinea)
	Sericulus chrysocephalus	Regent bowerbird	eastern Australia, from central Queensland to New South Wales

References

1. Ericson, P.G.P.; Irestedt, M.; Nylander, J.A.A.; Christidis, L.; Joseph, L.; Qu, Y. (2020). "Parallel evolution of bower-building behavior in two groups of bowerbirds suggested by phylogenomics". Systematic Biology. 69 (5): 820–829. doi: 10.1093/sysbio/syaa040 . PMC   7440736 .
2. Swainson, William (1825). "On the characters and natural affinities of several new birds from Australasia; including some observations on the Columbidae". Zoological Journal. 1: 463-484 [476-478].
3. Mayr, Ernst; Greenway, James C. Jr, eds. (1962). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 15. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 177.
4. Jobling, James A. "Sericulus". The Key to Scientific Names. Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 30 May 2025.
5. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (February 2025). "Lyrebirds, scrubbirds, bowerbirds, Australasian treecreepers, Australasian wrens". IOC World Bird List Version 15.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 30 May 2025.