Peter Kovalik
Well-known member
Rafael Sobral Marcondes, 2013. Taxonomia e filogenia do gênero Aramides Pucheran, 1845 (Aves: Gruiformes: Rallidae). / Taxonomy and phylogeny of the genus Aramides Pucheran, 1845 (Aves: Gruiformes: Rallidae). Dissertation.
Abstract:
The genus Aramides is basal in the Rallidae and, as currently accepted, comprises seven medium- to large-bodied species found from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, with plumage mainly in tones of green, black, gray and chestnut, conspicuous vocalizations, and furtive, semiaquatic habits. Six of these species are monotypic and one, A. cajaneus, comprises nine subspecies, whose diagnoses and limits are unclear. The remaining species have never been studied as to their phenotypic variation. The relations between the species of the genus have been investigated only once in a cladistic framework, but this analyses presents some deficiencies. The aims of the present work were to revise the taxonomy of Aramides, in order to ascertain how many species are there in the genus, and to propose a phylogenetic hypothesis of relations between them. To do so, 1416 skins and 196 tape-recordings were studied. The taxonomic revision, under the diagnosability criterion, recognizes ten species, four of them formerly included in A. cajaneus: A. cajaneus (found from Argentina to Costa Rica), A. avicenniae (coast of São Paulo and Paraná states), A. plumbeicollis (Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras), and A. albiventris (Honduras to Mexico). There is a complex zone of intergradation between A. albiventris and A. plumbeicollis. The treatment of the other six, monotypic species is maintained, but relevant plumage variation is described for A. mangle, A. ypecaha and especially A. wolfi. For the phylogenetic analyses, 22 integumentary and six vocal characters were assembled. Four analyses were performed under different outgroups and character sets. The strict consensus cladograms presented many polytomies, but some aspects were present in most of the analyses: A. axillaris and A. mangle are sister-groups, these and A. calopterus are basal in the genus, the A. cajaneus species complex is monophyletic, and A. wolfi is sister to this complex.
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Abstract:
The genus Aramides is basal in the Rallidae and, as currently accepted, comprises seven medium- to large-bodied species found from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, with plumage mainly in tones of green, black, gray and chestnut, conspicuous vocalizations, and furtive, semiaquatic habits. Six of these species are monotypic and one, A. cajaneus, comprises nine subspecies, whose diagnoses and limits are unclear. The remaining species have never been studied as to their phenotypic variation. The relations between the species of the genus have been investigated only once in a cladistic framework, but this analyses presents some deficiencies. The aims of the present work were to revise the taxonomy of Aramides, in order to ascertain how many species are there in the genus, and to propose a phylogenetic hypothesis of relations between them. To do so, 1416 skins and 196 tape-recordings were studied. The taxonomic revision, under the diagnosability criterion, recognizes ten species, four of them formerly included in A. cajaneus: A. cajaneus (found from Argentina to Costa Rica), A. avicenniae (coast of São Paulo and Paraná states), A. plumbeicollis (Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras), and A. albiventris (Honduras to Mexico). There is a complex zone of intergradation between A. albiventris and A. plumbeicollis. The treatment of the other six, monotypic species is maintained, but relevant plumage variation is described for A. mangle, A. ypecaha and especially A. wolfi. For the phylogenetic analyses, 22 integumentary and six vocal characters were assembled. Four analyses were performed under different outgroups and character sets. The strict consensus cladograms presented many polytomies, but some aspects were present in most of the analyses: A. axillaris and A. mangle are sister-groups, these and A. calopterus are basal in the genus, the A. cajaneus species complex is monophyletic, and A. wolfi is sister to this complex.
PDF here
