Canary Islands Chaffinch (1 Viewer)

Suárez, Betancor, Klassert, Almeida, Hernández & Pestano 2009. Phylogeography and genetic structure of the Canarian common chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) inferred with mtDNA and microsatellite loci:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=aa02f1f51751e497f9a45d52d9535b68

Although not absolutely clear, the abstract seems to suggest a split of Fringilla canariensis (including ssps ombriosa, palmae?), plus an additional incipient species F (canariensis) 'ssp nov' on Gran Canaria.

Richard

Richard Klim said:

Although not absolutely clear, ...

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The authors suggest to recognize F. canariensis with at least three subspecies :

- palmae : La Palma and El Hierro
- canariensis : Tenerife and La Gomera
- new ssp : Gran Canaria, this one being clearly differentiated at nuclear DNA level (incipient species ?).

Thanks Daniel.

It's curious that ombriosa is synomymised with palmae. eg, Leo Boon's 2002 video (Birds of the Macaronesian Islands - Part 1: the Canary Islands & Madeira), Clarke 2006 (Birds of the Atlantic Islands), Clement et al 1993 (Finches & Sparrows) and BWP all suggest that ombriosa is morphologically (if not genetically) distinct.

Also, I wonder if there are implications for moreletti and maderensis, given that Chaffinch probably arrived in Madeira and the Canaries from the Azores (Collinson 2001: Evolution of the Atlantic-island Chaffinches)?

Richard

Richard Klim said:

It's curious that ombriosa is synomymised with palmae. eg, Leo Boon's 2002 video (Birds of the Macronesian Islands - Part 1: the Canary Islands & Madeira), Clarke 2006 (Birds of the Atlantic Islands), Clement et al 1993 (Finches & Sparrows) and BWP all suggest that ombriosa is morphologically (if not genetically) distinct.

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Ombriosa and palmae are treated as different subspecies according to morphological traits (size and plumage coloration). In line with their data, the authors do not support this classification, but these populations do not share any haplotype, and present a high number of private alleles. Therefore, they say that El Hierro population could be considered, at least, as an evolutionary significant unit.