Sparrman's Swedish Priest Crow … (1 Viewer)

Even if no doubt of its etymology, here´s a small addition to the long list of Scientific Bird names – a long forgotten one (at least it´s not present in James Jobling's HBW Alive Key today):

● "Corvus Clericus" SPARRMAN 1786
= Latin: clericus (clergyman)

See attached Plate. Link to full OD (here). Most likely a leucistic ("partially albinistic") Black Crow Corvus c. corone or a ditto young Rook C. frugilegus – with a neat white patch under its "nose", making it look quite priestly!

Note Sparrman's end notation: "OBS. Rarissima in Svecia Avis." (Rare amongst Swedish Birds). It sure is!

I´ve never seen one!
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Small update with additional info on the Clericus Crow ...

Just to make the clericus even clearer … and forget about a possible synonym of the Rook!

I went to the Kungliga Biblioteket (The Royal Library) in Stockholm the other day. To check Sparrman's Svensk Ornithologie 1806, and in that book Sparrman lists the Clericus under "Corvus Corone" (Today's nominate subspecies Corvus c. corone, according to Sparrman separate from "Corvus cornix") with the clear explanation:

"Anledningen at den i Museum Carlsonianum af mig kallades Clericus, var des under hakan hvita fläck eller liksom krage, til des för öfrigt svartaktiga färg och således något liknande den nu varande presterliga drägten i vårt land. Denne varietet af C. corone eller så kallade C. clericus var skuten uti Vermeland, …"

Meaning someting like:

("The reason that I, in Museum Carlsonianum, called it Clericus, was its white spot below the chin or somwhat like a collar, which with its othertwise blackish colour, likewise somewhat similar to the present clerical costume of our country. This variety of C. corone or the so called C. clericus, was shot in Värmland, ... [province in in the west of middle Sweden])

Click to expand...

The Plate in Sparrman's Svensk Ornithologie 1806 of this "Corvus Clericus ʃeu - - - - Corone") is identical to the one in Sparrman's Museum Carlsonianum of 1786.
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