Mourning Wheatear (2 Viewers)

[Richard Klim]

Förschler, Khoury, Bairlein & Aliabadian 2010. Phylogeny of the Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens complex. Mol Phyl Evol: in press.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=bf5768c387ac389d0c97678cccba3799

Suggests species status for O (l) persica Persian Mourning Wheatear, but not for O (l) halophila Western Mourning (Maghreb) Wheatear [split by Dutch Birding, and Svensson et al 2009].

Richard

 

[Microtus]

That means there will be a Persian Wheatear (chrysopygia, new Collins) and a Persian Mourning Wheatear? Halophila is already split in the new Collins.

 

[Richard Klim]

That means there will be a Persian Wheatear (chrysopygia, new Collins) and a Persian Mourning Wheatear?

But Collins (Svensson et al 2009) is in a clear minority using the name Persian Wheatear for O chrysopygia. IOC, BLI, H&M3, OSME, AERC and Dutch Birding all use Red-tailed Wheatear; HBW uses Rusty-tailed Wheatear.

Richard

 

[Microtus]

But doesn't Red-tailed Wheatear apply to the combined xanthoprymna+chrysopygia? This is as dizzying as the AOU partial name changes when species are split (i.e. Canada Goose continued as a name after Cacking Goose was separated).
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[njlarsen]

But doesn't Red-tailed Wheatear apply to the combined xanthoprymna+chrysopygia? This is as dizzying as the AOU partial name changes when species are split (i.e. Canada Goose continued as a name after Cacking Goose was separated).
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Try read the taxonomy section here - it is dissying!

Niels

 

[Microtus]

I think I have it under control now.

Now, onward to North American sparrow reshuffling.

 

[Richard Klim]

Red-tailed Wheatear

But doesn't Red-tailed Wheatear apply to the combined xanthoprymna+chrysopygia?

Yes, and I agree it's always a recipe for confusion when the vernacular name of an original parent species is transferred to a newly split species, eg, Phoenicopterus roseus 'Greater Flamingo' split from P ruber 'Greater Flamingo'.

Richard

 

[Richard Klim]

'Basalt Wheatear'

Khoury, Förschler, Janaydeh, Aliabadian & Al-Hmoud 2010. Distribution, habitat and differentiation of the poorly-known black morph of Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens lugens in Jordan. Sandgrouse 32(2): 113-119.

The two forms of nominate lugens barely overlap in their geographical distribution in Jordan. Comments that the so-called black morph might be better treated as having an independent taxonomic status [presumably as a named ssp - 'basalti'?]. Now highly endangered and probably on the edge of extinction, at least in Jordan.​

Richard

 

[njlarsen]

Förschler, Khoury, Bairlein & Aliabadian 2010. Phylogeny of the Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens complex. Mol Phyl Evol: in press.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=bf5768c387ac389d0c97678cccba3799

Suggests species status for O (l) persica Persian Mourning Wheatear, but not for O (l) halophila Western Mourning (Maghreb) Wheatear [split by Dutch Birding, and Svensson et al 2009].

Richard

I just re-read this thread: these authors do not think that it is important that Western has clearly separateable females while the rest of the subspecies basically have male = females?

Niels

 

[Richard Klim]

I just re-read this thread: these authors do not think that it is important that Western has clearly separateable females while the rest of the subspecies basically have male = females?

The significance (or otherwise) of sexual dimorphism in wheatears was also discussed in this earlier thread:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=137889

Richard

 

[njlarsen]

Thanks Richard,
good to re-read that thread

Niels

 

[Scopoli]

Correction here:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...f480b731be4fd1b1d2dbce445e3a5527&searchtype=a

No access myself. Anyone know if it's important?

 

[Richard Klim]

Corrigendum

Correction here:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...f480b731be4fd1b1d2dbce445e3a5527&searchtype=a
No access myself. Anyone know if it's important?

Thanks, David.

It seems that the samples of O lugubris schalowi used in the study were mislabelled, and actually represent the nominate ssp lugubris. No impact on the principal conclusions.

Richard

 

[Richard Klim]

Basalt Wheatear

Khoury, Förschler, Janaydeh, Aliabadian & Al-Hmoud 2010. Distribution, habitat and differentiation of the poorly-known black morph of Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens lugens in Jordan. Sandgrouse 32(2): 113-119.

The two forms of nominate lugens barely overlap in their geographical distribution in Jordan. Comments that the so-called black morph might be better treated as having an independent taxonomic status.​

Shirihai, Kirwan & Helbig† 2011. A new taxon in the Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens complex. Bull BOC 131(4): 270-291.

• Oenanthe lugens warriae, subsp. nov., Shirihai & Kirwan
  Basalt Wheatear
  [Named for OSME's long-serving Effie Warr.]

Taxonomic rank.– ... Here, O. l. warriae is conservatively treated as a subspecies under a modern interpretation of the Biological Species Concept (e.g., Helbig et al. 2002), although we note that its plumage, mensural and other characters might, in combination, be sufficient to accord it species rank under the guidelines recently developed by Tobias et al. (2010; see Appendix 3). ...

[Förschler et al 2010 informally used the name "basalti".]

PS. Forthcoming (in addition to Hadoram's other ambitious projects!)...

• Shirihai, Keijl, Gargallo & Copete (in prep). Wheatears. Christopher Helm, London.

 

[Peter Kovalik]

Shirihai, Kirwan & Helbig 2011. A new taxon in the Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens complex. Bull BOC 131(4): 270-291.

• Oenanthe lugens warriae, subsp. nov., Shirihai & Kirwan
  Basalt Wheatear

• 
  
  Richard,
  just to be sure, Oenanthe lugens warriae, subsp. nov., Shirihai & Kirwan or Shirihai, Kirwan & Helbig?

 

[Richard Klim]

Richard,
just to be sure, Oenanthe lugens warriae, subsp. nov., Shirihai & Kirwan or Shirihai, Kirwan & Helbig?

Peter, it is 'Shirihai & Kirwan', but...

This paper is dedicated to two 'Oenanthe heroes'. ...the late Andreas J. Helbig, who sadly died before he could complete his work with HS on a planned wheatear monograph. All three of us collaborated on the already published Sylvia monograph (2001). HS remembers well his work with Andreas on warriae in Jordan, lugubris in Ethiopia, and searching for Somali Wheatear O. phillipsi in remote Ethiopia. His rare talent united pioneering molecular work with a passion (never lost) for field study. Helbig played an important role in the groundwork for this paper and he supported its central conclusion; we are pleased to include him as a co-author in recognition of this.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Khoury, Förschler, Janaydeh, Aliabadian & Al-Hmoud 2010. Distribution, habitat and differentiation of the poorly-known black morph of Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens lugens in Jordan. Sandgrouse 32(2): 113-119.

The two forms of nominate lugens barely overlap in their geographical distribution in Jordan. Comments that the so-called black morph might be better treated as having an independent taxonomic status [presumably as a named ssp - 'basalti'?]. Now highly endangered and probably on the edge of extinction, at least in Jordan.​

Richard

The status of this has been argued over for decades, no?

I did not realise it was on the edge of extinction however - that probably accounts for my failure to find one in the basalt deserts last year, my only find a juvenile White-cr Black Wheatear which at least got me stopping the car thinking I had found the desired one.

 

[Peter Kovalik]

Peter, it is 'Shirihai & Kirwan', but...

Richard thank you.

 

[GMK]

Just to be clear, the authors of the paper are the three people mentioned, Shirihai, Kirwan and Helbig. The authors of the taxon name are Shirihai and Kirwan. Such "separation" is not usual, but a perfectly acceptable device in situations like this. Andreas played a key role in the fieldwork and agreed with the central conclusion of the paper, but (for obvious reasons) did not write any of it and indeed wished to give it a different scientific name.

 

[Peter Kovalik]

Just to be clear, the authors of the paper are the three people mentioned, Shirihai, Kirwan and Helbig. The authors of the taxon name are Shirihai and Kirwan. Such "separation" is not usual, but a perfectly acceptable device in situations like this. Andreas played a key role in the fieldwork and agreed with the central conclusion of the paper, but (for obvious reasons) did not write any of it and indeed wished to give it a different scientific name.

Thanks Guy for the explanation.