A new taxonomy ... (1 Viewer)

[dantheman]

.. based on colour (for example).

This thread ( Robins are flycatchers? ) sets me thinking, time for a new taxonomy? Bottom up, grass roots organization of birds by appearance. Surely makes a lot of sense :t:

Colours don't change (or at least only verrrryyy slowwwwllly through the generations... ) Moving on from some of the seemingly whimsical taxonomic changes which are only going to be changed again when new criteria are discovered ...

You would then see the major groups like this;

eg Little Brown Bird superfamily
Big White birds family
Birds with red on them family
Birds that feed on bird feeders superfamily
Etc etc

So Mute Swans, the White Egrets and Iceland/Glaucous Gulls would all be in the same family.

Sandhill Crane, Goldfinch and Robin would all be congeners. (Red and use feeders)

And so forth ...

(Field Guides would also be organized into competely new categories, starting with groups you'd be most likely to see as a newbie, so Garden Birds would come first, followed by Birds You Might see on Holiday etc etc )

I'm sure there's more scope for this to be developed, if it hasn't been done already...

 

[Richard Klim]

A new taxonomy...

...based on colour...

Could be fun – opposite sexes would sometimes be members of different families; and many individuals would change family membership with age, in some cases twice a year!

Richard

 

[chris butterworth]

I'd have to go along with the Little Brown Bird Superfamily. That's the one with "Little Brown Bu**ers that all look the same spp." and " It's not a bird, it's just a disembodied sound in the Reedbed spp" in, isn't it?
Chris

 

[dantheman]

A lot of fun; you could possibly even tick the same individual as more than one species in any one year!

It makes an awful lot of sense; not only would it help beginners somewhat initially, but more learned/experienced birders could endlessly ponder whether Magpie Scaup belonged with the Lesser and Greater Scaup or should instead be aligned with Hooded Crow. Taxonomic conundrums such as 'Are Bullfinch and Robin more closely related than Robin and Common Buzzard'? would lead to endless debate ...

Not forgetting yearlisters would suddenly be up from the 300+ birds they could expect to see annually in the UK to 700+ species, 800+ if you do include the immatures…

It would work internationally too; in the USA, female Red-winged Blackbird could at last be correctly assigned to the Stripey Scruffy family along with all the other Sparrows and juvenile rails etc.

Ringtail Harrier would move into the white-rumped family (White-rumped Hawkfinch –the 2nd Ed Collins had it right all along ) along with the other white-rumped finches, Sandpiper and Wheatears. (Alongside the closely related Yellow-rumps including female Golden Oriole, as well as the more traditional Serin and Siskin.)

And so on ...

 

[Farnboro John]

Yeah.... and what happens when you get different colour morphs in one species e.g. one of the Boubous comes with either a red or yellow breast (both spectacular) and Gyrs are from white to charcoal.....?

This works better in field guides than in taxonomy.

John

 

[Mysticete]

Yeah I am assuming this is in jest

Although someone in a recent letters column did seriously suggest that the ABA "fix" the taxonomy they use and allow no more recent revisions, genera changes, splits and lumps, since it wasn't "fair" for competitive birders to have to keep up with changes or have to look for "new" species.

 

[Jacana]

just imagine the long-tailed duck and snow bunting splits that will occur |:S|

 

[Accentor]

just imagine the long-tailed duck and snow bunting splits that will occur |:S|

Or the three Ptarmigans :-O

 

[chris butterworth]

It'd sort out Yellow Wagtails - finally!
Chris