Björn Bergenholtz
(former alias "Calalp")
While searching for the taxonomically tricky species (or sub-species) "Barlow's lark" I happened to stumble upon, quite a few odd, rarely mentioned Scientific names …. all from the same article: Roberts, A. 1937. Some results of the Barlow-Transvaal Museum Expedition to South West Africa. Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology 8 (2): 84-111.
I post this long list of names (irrespective if they´re valid or not) with my interpretations of their different etymologies – not because I´m going to study them any further, but only since that journal (in my experience) can be pretty hard to find ... and somebody might be interested ... so, enjoy!
First of all, let´s start with the one that I really was looking for, the one that I´ve checked (as well as "his" sudden additional "sub-species" that I wasn´t aware of) and feel pretty safe about:
● barlowi in …
● Barlow's Lark (Certhilauda/Mirafra) Calendulauda (erythrochlamys/albescens) barlowi ROBERTS 1937: as "Pseudammomanes barlowi"
● as well as the sub-species "Phoenicuroides tractrac barlowi" ROBERTS 1937 (today Cercomela tractrac barlowi)
● and the invalid sub-species "Heterotetrax vigorsii barlowi" ROBERTS 1937 (synonymous with – his own! – (H.) Eupodotis vigorsii namaqua ROBERTS 1932
= They all commemorate the wealthy South African business man, entrepreneur, philanthropist and Expedition sponsor: Charles Sydney Barlow (1905–1979), among friends known as "Punch".
Those three birds all appear in this article = CHECK!
Barlow ... case closed, over and out!
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The others are, (in alphabetical order) as follows (not checking any further, nor hereafter considering their validity or not!):
● – aridula in …
● "Pseudammomanes burra aridula" by ROBERTS 1937
= … no explanation. Probably a bionym, ofthe Latin aridus (dry), in connection to its habitat?
● – ausensis in …
● "Fringillaria capensis ausensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Aus, S.W.A., 31st July, 1937."
● – barbiensis in …
● "Chersomanes albofasciata barbiensis" by ROBERTS 1937 (compare with REICHENOW 1904?)
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Barbi Farm, Helmeringshausen, S.W.A., 17th July, 1937."
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla barbiensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Barbi Farm, 25 miles, west of Helmeringshausen, S.W.A., 24th July, 1937."
● – bradfieldi in …
● "Chapinortyx hartlaubi bradfieldi" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Rock Francolin
= an eponym: probably after: "Mr.R. D.Bradfield" mentioned earlier in the same article.
● – bushmanensis in …
● "Chersomanes albofasciata bushmanensis" by ROBERTS 1937 [= Chersomanes albofasciata garrula ("bushmanensis")]
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected on the "border of Bushman Flats and Little Namqualand on the road from Goodhouse to Steinkopf, 17th August, 1937."
● – calviniensis in …
● "Calendulauda guttata calviniensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, an adult male, collected "15 miles east of Calvinia, C. P."
● "Chersomanes albofasciata calviniensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, an adult male, collected "35 miles east of Calvinia, on the Brandvlei road, …."
¨
● – fitzimonsi in …
● "Heterotetrax ruppellii fitzsimonsi" by ROBERTS 1937
= an eponym: "Mr. Vivian FitzSimons, accompanying me for the purpose of collecting lower vertebrates and invertebrates."
● – harei in …
● "Pseudammomanes harei" by ROBERTS 1937
● "Heterotetrax vigorsii harei" by ROBERTS 1937
= an eponym: "Mr. H. Leighton Hare was also prepared to accompany and assist me in collecting birds, …" and further on " to my old friend Mr. Harry Leighton Hare for his great help in collecting specimens and assisting in skinning when necessary: …"
● – hewitti in …
● "Chrithagra albigularis hewitti" by ROBERTS 1937
= probably an eponym … no explanation whatsoever.
● – kaokensis in …
● "Aethocicgla gymnogenys kaokensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected by "Huab River, Kaokoveld, S.W.A., 22nd June, 1937."
● – karasensis in …
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla karasensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected near "Kochena, Great Karas Mountains, Great Namaqualand, 11th August, 1937."
● "Fringillaria capensis karasensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected near "Kochena, Great Karas Mountains, S.W.A. 10th August, 1937."
● – klaverensis in …
● "Fringillaria capensis klaverensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Klaver, C.P., 20th Sept. 1917."
● – kobosensis in …
● "Karrucincla schlegelii kobosensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected in "Kobos, Rehoboth District, S.W.A., 19th July 1937.
● – orangensis in …
● "Chrithagra albigularis orangensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= probably a toponym… with no clear explanation, maybe hidden in, where the Type was collected "Fauresmith, O.F.S., December 1936.
● – ovambensis in …
● "Anacorys africanoides ovambensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected "50 miles north-west of Naumutoni, on the road to Ondonga, Ovamboland, 26th May, 1937."
● "Serinus atrogularis ovambensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Ondonga, Ovamboland, 4th July, 1937."
● – pollux in …
● "Karrucincla pollux pollux" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Hartlaub's Chat
= no explanation. Probably an ergonym of the Latin pollux (fighter, boxer), in connection to its behaviour.
● – tractrac in …
● "Phoenicuroides tractrac tractrac" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Layard's Chat
= a phononym; the French ornithologist François Levaillant's onomatopetic interpretation of its sound.
● – tsumebensis in …
● "Anacorys africanoides tsumebensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Tsumeb, S.W.A., 13th January, 1917,." by "C. G. Davies".
● "Aethocichla gymnogenys tsumebensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a female, collected at "Tsumeb, ex collrection C. G. Finch-Davies, 30th November, 1916"
● – windhoekensis in …
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla windhoekensis"by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Neudamm Government Farm, 25 miles east f Windhoek, S.W.A., 14th July, 1937."
That’s´s them ... and those Austin Roberts's Birds!
PS. Not many of them have survived the scrutiny of modern taxonomist's.
I post this long list of names (irrespective if they´re valid or not) with my interpretations of their different etymologies – not because I´m going to study them any further, but only since that journal (in my experience) can be pretty hard to find ... and somebody might be interested ... so, enjoy!
First of all, let´s start with the one that I really was looking for, the one that I´ve checked (as well as "his" sudden additional "sub-species" that I wasn´t aware of) and feel pretty safe about:
● barlowi in …
● Barlow's Lark (Certhilauda/Mirafra) Calendulauda (erythrochlamys/albescens) barlowi ROBERTS 1937: as "Pseudammomanes barlowi"
● as well as the sub-species "Phoenicuroides tractrac barlowi" ROBERTS 1937 (today Cercomela tractrac barlowi)
● and the invalid sub-species "Heterotetrax vigorsii barlowi" ROBERTS 1937 (synonymous with – his own! – (H.) Eupodotis vigorsii namaqua ROBERTS 1932
= They all commemorate the wealthy South African business man, entrepreneur, philanthropist and Expedition sponsor: Charles Sydney Barlow (1905–1979), among friends known as "Punch".
Those three birds all appear in this article = CHECK!
Barlow ... case closed, over and out!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The others are, (in alphabetical order) as follows (not checking any further, nor hereafter considering their validity or not!):
● – aridula in …
● "Pseudammomanes burra aridula" by ROBERTS 1937
= … no explanation. Probably a bionym, ofthe Latin aridus (dry), in connection to its habitat?
● – ausensis in …
● "Fringillaria capensis ausensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Aus, S.W.A., 31st July, 1937."
● – barbiensis in …
● "Chersomanes albofasciata barbiensis" by ROBERTS 1937 (compare with REICHENOW 1904?)
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Barbi Farm, Helmeringshausen, S.W.A., 17th July, 1937."
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla barbiensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Barbi Farm, 25 miles, west of Helmeringshausen, S.W.A., 24th July, 1937."
● – bradfieldi in …
● "Chapinortyx hartlaubi bradfieldi" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Rock Francolin
= an eponym: probably after: "Mr.R. D.Bradfield" mentioned earlier in the same article.
● – bushmanensis in …
● "Chersomanes albofasciata bushmanensis" by ROBERTS 1937 [= Chersomanes albofasciata garrula ("bushmanensis")]
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected on the "border of Bushman Flats and Little Namqualand on the road from Goodhouse to Steinkopf, 17th August, 1937."
● – calviniensis in …
● "Calendulauda guttata calviniensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, an adult male, collected "15 miles east of Calvinia, C. P."
● "Chersomanes albofasciata calviniensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, an adult male, collected "35 miles east of Calvinia, on the Brandvlei road, …."
¨
● – fitzimonsi in …
● "Heterotetrax ruppellii fitzsimonsi" by ROBERTS 1937
= an eponym: "Mr. Vivian FitzSimons, accompanying me for the purpose of collecting lower vertebrates and invertebrates."
● – harei in …
● "Pseudammomanes harei" by ROBERTS 1937
● "Heterotetrax vigorsii harei" by ROBERTS 1937
= an eponym: "Mr. H. Leighton Hare was also prepared to accompany and assist me in collecting birds, …" and further on " to my old friend Mr. Harry Leighton Hare for his great help in collecting specimens and assisting in skinning when necessary: …"
● – hewitti in …
● "Chrithagra albigularis hewitti" by ROBERTS 1937
= probably an eponym … no explanation whatsoever.
● – kaokensis in …
● "Aethocicgla gymnogenys kaokensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected by "Huab River, Kaokoveld, S.W.A., 22nd June, 1937."
● – karasensis in …
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla karasensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected near "Kochena, Great Karas Mountains, Great Namaqualand, 11th August, 1937."
● "Fringillaria capensis karasensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected near "Kochena, Great Karas Mountains, S.W.A. 10th August, 1937."
● – klaverensis in …
● "Fringillaria capensis klaverensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Klaver, C.P., 20th Sept. 1917."
● – kobosensis in …
● "Karrucincla schlegelii kobosensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected in "Kobos, Rehoboth District, S.W.A., 19th July 1937.
● – orangensis in …
● "Chrithagra albigularis orangensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= probably a toponym… with no clear explanation, maybe hidden in, where the Type was collected "Fauresmith, O.F.S., December 1936.
● – ovambensis in …
● "Anacorys africanoides ovambensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected "50 miles north-west of Naumutoni, on the road to Ondonga, Ovamboland, 26th May, 1937."
● "Serinus atrogularis ovambensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Ondonga, Ovamboland, 4th July, 1937."
● – pollux in …
● "Karrucincla pollux pollux" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Hartlaub's Chat
= no explanation. Probably an ergonym of the Latin pollux (fighter, boxer), in connection to its behaviour.
● – tractrac in …
● "Phoenicuroides tractrac tractrac" (just mentioned, as; not previously described Eggs) a k a (by Austin Roberts) Layard's Chat
= a phononym; the French ornithologist François Levaillant's onomatopetic interpretation of its sound.
● – tsumebensis in …
● "Anacorys africanoides tsumebensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Tsumeb, S.W.A., 13th January, 1917,." by "C. G. Davies".
● "Aethocichla gymnogenys tsumebensis" by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a female, collected at "Tsumeb, ex collrection C. G. Finch-Davies, 30th November, 1916"
● – windhoekensis in …
● "Drymodyta subruficapilla windhoekensis"by ROBERTS 1937
= a toponym; Type, a male, collected at "Neudamm Government Farm, 25 miles east f Windhoek, S.W.A., 14th July, 1937."
That’s´s them ... and those Austin Roberts's Birds!
PS. Not many of them have survived the scrutiny of modern taxonomist's.
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