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masafuerae ("masafucrae")... in German (1 Viewer)

Björn Bergenholtz

Björn Bergenholtz

(former alias "Calalp")
Sweden
I see no reason at all to doubt that the Scientific name masafuerae in Masafuera Rayadito Aphrastura masafuerae PHILIPPI & LANDBECK 1866 (here) as "Synallaxis Masafucrae" [sic!] is aimed at the Island formerly known as "Isla Más Afuera" [today's, since 1966; Isla Alejandro Selkirk (a k a Más Afuera Island, in English, today: Alexander Selkirk Island), the westernmost Island in the Juan Fernández Island Group, Chile].

I would only like to understand what went down. In the OD it is written:
Unter den Vögeln, welche Dr. P h i l i p p i neuerlich von der Nachbar-Insel Juan Fernandez mitbrachte war der beschriebene Vogel nicht enthalten, obgleich derselbe einen tüchtigen Jäger und Sammler bei sich hatte; wonach es scheint, dass unser Vogel der Kleinen, von Juan Fernandez etwa 40 Leguas entfernten Felsen-Insel Masafucra [sic] eigenthümlich ist.
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Anyone feel like helping translating it?

And: does anyone know exactly when, in what year (or even month, date?) the Type was collected?

Greatful for any help.

Björn (who doesn´t understand more than the most basic German)
 
Can't help you with the date of collection, but:
Among the birds which Dr Philippi recently brought with him from the neighbouring island of Juan Fernandez, the described [or aforementioned? Don't know if it's used as taxonomic term or merely a grammatical device. If the former, beschreiben = to describe] bird wasn't present, even though the same [Dr. Philippi] had a proficient hunter and collector with him; following this, it seems that our bird is endemic to the Small [sic; probably a typo?] rocky island of Masafucra, which is about 40 leguas from Juan Fernandez.
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This is keeping close to the sentence structure where possible.

- Andy
 
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As well it is not even sure who collected the holotype. Maybe the holotype is still present in the Museo de la Exploracion Rudolph Amandus Philippi in Valdivia or the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural in Santiago and the label give some more information?
 
Hahn & Römer 1996, Cotinga 6:18 [pdf]:
IH recently inspected the holotype, a male, which is preserved in the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural (Santiago, Chile), No. MNHN-338. It was collected in October 1855 by Dr. R. A. Philippi.
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Thanks Andy, Martin & Laurent! Your kind assistance sure help a lot. :t:

But ... doesn´t the sentence "... obgleich derselbe einen tüchtigen Jäger und Sammler bei sich hatte; ... " indicate that the Type was collected by a another (local) hunter/collector than Philippi himself?

Presumably (?) believed to have been collected by Philippi hence he was the one delivering it from his journey to the Juan Fernández Islands.

Or?

Björn
 
Calalp said:
Thanks Andy, Martin & Laurent! Your kind assistance sure help a lot. :t:
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You're welcome :t:


But ... doesn´t the sentence "... obgleich derselbe einen tüchtigen Jäger und Sammler bei sich hatte; ... " indicate that the Type was collected by a another (local) hunter/collector than Philippi himself?
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I don't know anything about the backstory, but it sounds like there was a (local?) specialist for these tasks employed by Dr Philippi. Maybe that specialist only collected on the Juan Fernandez trip and not on Más Afuera. At least, that's what the meaning of this paragraph suggests.
The term "Sammler" can mean either gatherer *) or collector (as in "stamp collector").


*) as in the term "hunter-gatherer" - in German "Jäger und Sammler" - from anthropology/archaeology; while that seems like the literal translation, it seems mighty odd in the context of ornithology.
 
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As I understand it, this paragraph (which is at the very end of the species description) was about birds collected during a recent trip of Philippi to Juan Fernandez. If the info in the Cotinga paper is correct, the holotype was collected 11 years before the paper was published. I assume Philippi did not stay a decade on the islands, so to me this suggests that he went to Masafuera and Juan Fernandez on two entirely different trips.

(Andy, can't 'neuerlich' [vs. 'neulich'] also be understood as 'more recently', actually?)
 
l_raty said:
... If the info in the Cotinga paper is correct, the holotype was collected 11 years before the paper was published. ...
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Confirmed by Tipos de Aves en el Museo Nacional de Historia Natural: Catalogo critico, 1989 (here, p.18):
[...]
MNHN 338. Holotipo. Macho adulto. Isla A. Selkirk. Archipiélago Juan Fernández, Prov. Valparaíso, V. Reg., Octubre 1855. Buen estado.
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Also, earlier, in 1930 (here, p.14), when the Island was still called "Isla Más Afuera":
Synallaxis Masafuerae Ph. & Landb.—WA 32 (1866) 127 (lapsus Masafucrae); AMN 36 lám. 13, fig.2 y 2a.
Localidad del tipo; Isla Más Afuera (año 1855), achipiélago de Juan Fernández.
Sexo del tipo: no dice.
Tipo hallado: N.° n. 176 = ant. 338.
Hay cuatro ejemplares posteriores, reconocidos por Philippi como de de esta especie. Nos. ants. 336-337-339 y 340.
Nombre según autores posteriores.
Dubois: Oxyurus masafueræ (Ph. & Landb.)
Cat. Field: Aphrastura masafueræ (Ph. & Landb.)
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Again: thanks for the help!

I now have what I need to finish my entry/text regarding the Masafuera Rayadito (in Swedish alejandroselkirktörnstjärt).

The Odd thing (maybe worth to mention) is that the Original Alexander Selkirk (the man and inspiration for the book Robinson Crusoe) was stranded (1704–1709) at the neighbouring Island (Isla) Más A Tierra [today's Isla Robinson Crusoe (Robinson Crusoe Island)]. In any case, this somewhat illogical choice of what to call the Islands themselves is of minor importance regarding this bird and the actual (one and only) Island it inhabits.

See you all ... elsewhere!

Björn

masafuerae = (Isla) Más Afuera (Island), today's Isla Alejandro Selkirk (Alexander Selkirk Island) ... over and out!
 
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