Daniel Philippe
Well-known member
How many species in the Torquatus complex ?
H&M 3 (Dickinson 2003) list only 2: S. dacotiae & S. torquatus, but they say in a footnote: “Proposed splits of this complex species seem unsatisfactory if only in how the forms are ascribed to species.”
Regarding S. t. sibilla, they also say in another footnote: “Montane birds of Madagascar require detailed evaluation and may be valid relict forms deserving species status see Morris & Hawkins (1998: 227). So may S. t. tectes.”
OK, so I went to Morris & Hawkins (1998) and read in the range/status paragraph: “Represented in Madagascar by three endemic subspecies: S. t. sibilla occurs from sea level to 2.500m and is common in the east and in high plateau towns but is scarce or absent in most of the west and south. S. t. ankaratrae is restricted to mountainous areas near Ankaratra and areas south and south-west of Antananarivo. S. t. tsaratananae is restricted to the Tsaratanana highlands.”
Furthermore both Langrand (1990) and Morris & Hawkins (1998) agree that ankaratrae is larger than the nominate and tsaratananae has “the lower breast blackish, with only tips of these feathers chestnut”.
At this stage considering the above and Dickinson’s footnotes, my conclusion was: either ankaratrae or tsaratananae might be a species in addition to tectes.
Today Woog & al. (2008) publish a paper on the taxonomic position of the Madagascar Stonechat http://www.springerlink.com/content/3m2p84374vk69108.
The samples were taken at one place only (not were ankaratrae or tsaratananae occur) and the authors came to the conclusion “that the Madagascar stonechat is very likely to be a distinct species, Saxicola sibilla (Linnaeus 1766).”
So we may have more than one species on this island actually.
Do you know of similar examples in Africa within S. (t.) torquatus (for instance albofasciatus) ? In Asia within S. (t.) maurus (for instance indicus and variegatus) ?
Just a naive question I guess o
Daniel
H&M 3 (Dickinson 2003) list only 2: S. dacotiae & S. torquatus, but they say in a footnote: “Proposed splits of this complex species seem unsatisfactory if only in how the forms are ascribed to species.”
Regarding S. t. sibilla, they also say in another footnote: “Montane birds of Madagascar require detailed evaluation and may be valid relict forms deserving species status see Morris & Hawkins (1998: 227). So may S. t. tectes.”
OK, so I went to Morris & Hawkins (1998) and read in the range/status paragraph: “Represented in Madagascar by three endemic subspecies: S. t. sibilla occurs from sea level to 2.500m and is common in the east and in high plateau towns but is scarce or absent in most of the west and south. S. t. ankaratrae is restricted to mountainous areas near Ankaratra and areas south and south-west of Antananarivo. S. t. tsaratananae is restricted to the Tsaratanana highlands.”
Furthermore both Langrand (1990) and Morris & Hawkins (1998) agree that ankaratrae is larger than the nominate and tsaratananae has “the lower breast blackish, with only tips of these feathers chestnut”.
At this stage considering the above and Dickinson’s footnotes, my conclusion was: either ankaratrae or tsaratananae might be a species in addition to tectes.
Today Woog & al. (2008) publish a paper on the taxonomic position of the Madagascar Stonechat http://www.springerlink.com/content/3m2p84374vk69108.
The samples were taken at one place only (not were ankaratrae or tsaratananae occur) and the authors came to the conclusion “that the Madagascar stonechat is very likely to be a distinct species, Saxicola sibilla (Linnaeus 1766).”
So we may have more than one species on this island actually.
Do you know of similar examples in Africa within S. (t.) torquatus (for instance albofasciatus) ? In Asia within S. (t.) maurus (for instance indicus and variegatus) ?
Just a naive question I guess o
Daniel
