I'm curious about the content, which species are tested or not. John Boyd incorporates it, but I find some of the groupings to be intuitively weird.
For me, Black, Common and Hodgson's naturally group together. He pairs Hodgson's with Güldenstädt's, sister to Black + Daurian and Common + Moussier's. Moussier's especially is really an oddball in the mix!
But then again, it's not the first time bird taxonomy challenges intuition. If Cinnamon Ibon can be a sparrow, anything can happen!
Taxonomy
...Tobias et al. (2010) promote the idea that individual taxa be assessed if they meet the criteria for species status, rather than waiting for a full review of all forms and, in the case of Black Redstart, that is indeed most helpful advice, because the position of ochruros requires further study. Clearly then, the best treatment is to split Western Black Redstart as a monotypic species, Phoenicurus gibraltariensis; Eastern Black Redstart then becomes a polytypic species, P. ochruros (comprising P. o. ochruros, P. o. semirufus, P. o. phoenicuroides and P. o. rufiventris). ...
Eds.
Yes, Mike. When I first saw the title, I wrongly assumed that the paper concerned a zone of hybridisation between nominate phoenicurus and samamisicus ('Ehrenberg's Redstart').Fascinating stuff!
van den Berg 2013 (Dutch Birding bird names) lists Ehrenberg's Redstart P p samamisicus as a 'distinct subspecies sometimes considered specifically distinct'.Abstract The vocalisations of 'Ehrenberg's Redstart' Phoenicurus phoenicurus samamisicus are analysed and compared with those of the nominate race. There is considerable variation in the song of both races, but three parts can usually be distinguished: an introductory note; a repetitive, heavily modulated sequence; and a highly variable component at the end. In samamisicus, the introduction is variable and only rarely does it consist solely of a clear whistle similar to that of nominate phoenicurus. The song of samamisicus varies geographically but no large-scale geographical variation in the song of phoenicurus was found. On its own, the call appears not to be an infallible means of separating the races because some phoenicurus, at least from the eastern part of the range, can give calls identical to samamisicus.
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Differences in vocalisations and taxonomy
There are some consistent differences in the songs of phoenicurus and samamisicus, although some introgression of typical phoenicurus elements occurs within the range of samamisicus. This suggests that the geographical boundaries of vocal differences may not correspond with those of plumage differences. Similarly, differences in calls do not correspond with the boundaries of plumage differences. It is generally assumed that calls have a stronger genetic component in their inheritance than songs. Whether the Common Redstart is an exception to this rule, or how the flat call heard in some of the easternmost populations of phoenicurus arose, is unknown.
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The avian genus Phoenicurus (redstarts) are widely distributed across Eurasia and Northwest Africa. Many species are migratory and have widespread distributions, while a few species are more restricted geographically. Recent studies have found genetic and geographic structuring within a number of species distributed across eastern, western, and southern Eurasia. An interspecific biogeographic study of Phoenicurus has also indicated that both Phoenicurus auroreus and Phoenicurus ochruros have deeply divergent clades; this was however based on very limited sampling of geographically disjunct populations. In this study, we elucidate the biogeographic patterns of Phoenicurus through phylogenetic and phylogeographic analysis of Phoenicurus ochruros and Phoenicurus auroreus, using 2 independent molecular loci: mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase 2 and intron 9 of the Z chromosome specific ACO1. Bayesian, maximum likelihood, and molecular dating methods are used to assess patterns of diversification within each species. We then compare phylogenetic structure between these species in order to determine possible causative links between genetic structuring and vicariant events, such as desertification and glacial cycles of Eurasia that have been linked to widespread speciation patterns in Eurasian birds.
Voelker, Semenov, Fadeev, Blick & Drovetski (in press). The biogeographic history of Phoenicurus redstarts reveals an allopatric mode of speciation and an out-of-Himalayas colonization pattern. Syst Biodivers. [abstract & preview]Forthcoming...
Voelker, Semenov, Fadeev, Blick & Drovetski (in press). The biogeographic history of Phoenicurus redstarts reveals an allopatric mode of speciation and an out-of-Himalayas colonization pattern. Syst Biodivers.
Voelker, Semenov, Fadeev, Blick & Drovetski (in press). The biogeographic history of Phoenicurus redstarts reveals an allopatric mode of speciation and an out-of-Himalayas colonization pattern. Syst Biodivers. [abstract & preview]
Fedorenko V.A., 2018. A new subspecies of the Black Redstart – Phoenicurus ochruros murinus subsp. nov. from the Altai-Sayan Mountainous Country and the current breeding range of the Black Redstart. Proc. Zool. Inst. Russ. Acad. Sci. 322 (2): 108-128.
Access to PDF from here
Not sure on that - suppose for example if the type specimen of ochruros was demonstrably a hybrid between gibraltariensis and semirufus?In Handbook of Western Palearctic birds, it is discussed that Black Redstart nominate subspecies ochruros is perhaps not valid, but is maintained for stability, because its suppression would require a new scientific name for the whole species. But is that true? I would have thought that either gibraltariensis or semirufus becomes a junior synonym of ochruros.