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Category:Corvidae - BirdForum Opus

Family: Corvidae

Description

Around 125 species of crows, jays and magpies are found worldwide. They inhabit all continents except Antarctica.
Basic features of the corvids are:

  • long tarsi
  • stiffened primaries and tail feathers
  • tuft of nasal bristles extending to the nostril opening
  • an unspotted juvenile plumage (except Crested Jay)

The body size in this family is quite variable. Ravens and crows can be quite large whereas jays and magpies are only medium-sized. The Common Raven is the largest passerine in the world, reaching 69 cm in length and 2 kg in weight. On the other hand the Dwarf Jay of Mexico with 20 cm and 40 g is the smallest corvid.
The corvids are one of the best-known avian groups and they have fascinated man for a long time. Images of them are found on cave wall paintings made by the early humans. Their curiosity, memory, attractive movement, varied vocalisations and ecological plasticity have intrigued people around the world.

Taxonomy

Corvidae is a family in the order Passeriformes.
Studies indicate that the family is monophyletic which means that all corvids have the same ancestor. This species lived most probably in today's Australia some 53 million years ago.
The relationsship within the other avian families has been discussed for a long time. New work indicate that the Birds-of-paradise are the sister-group of the corvids and that the Bowerbirds, the Shrikes and the Vireos are also closely related to them.
The taxonomic placement of the Crested Jay is still unsure and it may not be a corvid at all.


Family Corvidae viewedit

Genus Platylophus viewedit
P. galericulatus Crested Jay

Genus Platysmurus viewedit
P. leucopterus Black Magpie

Genus Perisoreus viewedit
P. infaustus Siberian Jay
P. internigrans Sichuan Jay
P. canadensis Canada Jay

Genus Cyanolyca viewedit
C. mirabilis White-throated Jay
C. nanus Dwarf Jay
C. pumilo Black-throated Jay
C. argentigula Silvery-throated Jay
C. cucullata Azure-hooded Jay
C. pulchra Beautiful Jay
C. armillata Black-collared Jay
C. turcosa Turquoise Jay
C. viridicyanus White-collared Jay

Genus Calocitta viewedit
C. colliei Black-throated Magpie-Jay
C. formosa White-throated Magpie-Jay

Genus Psilorhinus viewedit
P. morio Brown Jay

Genus Cyanocorax viewedit
C. dickeyi Tufted Jay
C. affinis Black-chested Jay
C. yncas Green Jay
C. melanocyaneus Bushy-crested Jay
C. sanblasianus San Blas Jay
C. yucatanicus Yucatan Jay
C. beecheii Purplish-backed Jay
C. cyanomelas Purplish Jay
C. caeruleus Azure Jay
C. violaceus Violaceous Jay
C. cristatellus Curl-crested Jay
C. mystacalis White-tailed Jay
C. cayanus Cayenne Jay
C. heilprini Azure-naped Jay
C. chrysops Plush-crested Jay
C. cyanopogon White-naped Jay

Genus Gymnorhinus viewedit
G. cyanocephalus Pinyon Jay

Genus Cyanocitta viewedit
C. stelleri Steller's Jay
C. cristata Blue Jay

Genus Aphelocoma viewedit
A. coerulescens Florida Scrub Jay
A. insularis Island Scrub Jay
A. californica California Scrub Jay
A. woodhouseii Woodhouse's Scrub Jay
A. wollweberi Mexican Jay
A. ultramarina Transvolcanic Jay
A. unicolor Unicolored Jay

Genus Garrulus viewedit
G. glandarius Eurasian Jay
G. lanceolatus Black-headed Jay
G. lidthi Lidth's Jay

Genus Cyanopica viewedit
C. cooki Iberian Magpie
C. cyanus Azure-winged Magpie

Genus Urocissa viewedit
U. ornata Sri Lanka Blue Magpie
U. caerulea Taiwan Blue Magpie
U. flavirostris Yellow-billed Blue Magpie
U. erythroryncha Red-billed Blue Magpie
U. whiteheadi White-winged Magpie

Genus Cissa viewedit
C. chinensis Common Green Magpie
C. hypoleuca Indochinese Green Magpie
C. thalassina Javan Green Magpie
C. jefferyi Bornean Green Magpie

Genus Dendrocitta viewedit
D. vagabunda Rufous Treepie
D. formosae Grey Treepie
D. occipitalis Sumatran Treepie
D. cinerascens Bornean Treepie
D. leucogastra White-bellied Treepie
D. frontalis Collared Treepie
D. bayleyii Andaman Treepie

Genus Crypsirina viewedit
C. temia Racket-tailed Treepie
C. cucullata Hooded Treepie

Genus Temnurus viewedit
T. temnurus Ratchet-tailed Treepie

Genus Pica viewedit
P. mauritanica Maghreb Magpie
P. asirensis Asir Magpie
P. bottanensis Black-rumped Magpie
P. serica Oriental Magpie
P. pica Eurasian Magpie
P. hudsonia Black-billed Magpie
P. nuttalli Yellow-billed Magpie

Genus Zavattariornis viewedit
Z. stresemanni Stresemann's Bush Crow

Genus Podoces viewedit
P. hendersoni Mongolian Ground Jay
P. biddulphi Xinjiang Ground Jay
P. panderi Turkestan Ground Jay
P. pleskei Pleske's Ground Jay

Genus Nucifraga viewedit
N. columbiana Clark's Nutcracker
N. caryocatactes Eurasian Nutcracker
N. multipunctata Large-spotted Nutcracker

Genus Pyrrhocorax viewedit
P. pyrrhocorax Red-billed Chough
P. graculus Yellow-billed Chough

Genus Ptilostomus viewedit
P. afer Piapiac

Genus Corvus viewedit
C. monedula Eurasian Jackdaw
C. dauuricus Daurian Jackdaw
C. splendens House Crow
C. moneduloides New Caledonian Crow
C. unicolor Banggai Crow
C. enca Slender-billed Crow
C. violaceus Violet Crow
C. typicus Piping Crow
C. florensis Flores Crow
C. kubaryi Mariana Crow
C. validus Long-billed Crow
C. woodfordi White-billed Crow
C. meeki Bougainville Crow
C. fuscicapillus Brown-headed Crow
C. tristis Grey Crow
C. capensis Cape Crow
C. frugilegus Rook
C. brachyrhynchos American Crow
C. caurinus Northwestern Crow
C. minutus Palm Crow
C. nasicus Cuban Crow
C. leucognaphalus White-necked Crow
C. jamaicensis Jamaican Crow
C. imparatus Tamaulipas Crow
C. sinaloae Sinaloa Crow
C. ossifragus Fish Crow
C. hawaiiensis Hawaiian Crow
C. cryptoleucus Chihuahuan Raven
C. corone Carrion Crow
C. cornix Hooded Crow
C. macrorhynchos Large-billed Crow
C. orru Torresian Crow
C. insularis Bismarck Crow
C. bennetti Little Crow
C. coronoides Australian Raven
C. mellori Little Raven
C. tasmanicus Forest Raven
C. pectoralis Collared Crow
C. albus Pied Crow
C. ruficollis Brown-necked Raven
C. edithae Somali Crow
C. rhipidurus Fan-tailed Raven
C. albicollis White-necked Raven
C. crassirostris Thick-billed Raven
C. corax Common Raven

References

  1. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
  2. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507

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