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Bird Taxonomy

Index of articles about bird taxonomy, new and potential species splits, and related subjects. The focus is on North African birds.

Black-eared Wheatear split and new ‘melanoleuca’ record for Morocco

Eastern Black-eared Wheatear (Oenanthe melanoleuca) captured and ringed at Merzouga, south-east Morocco, 8 March 2020 (Marc Illa).

The ‘Black-eared Wheatear’ is split into two separate species by the ‘IOC World Bird List’ based on recent genetic research. The first modern record of the Eastern Black-eared Wheatear has arrived just in time. Le Traquet oreillard est composé de deux taxons, qui sont considérés jusqu’à présent comme des sous-espèces : un taxon nominal occidental […]

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Split of Western and Eastern Subalpine Warblers confirmed

Western Subalpine Warbler (Sylvia iberiae) photographed in Morocco by Phil Gower.

A new study confirmed that the ‘Subalpine Warbler’ complex is indeed composed of three different species (Moltoni’s Warbler, Western and Eastern Subalpine Warblers). The ‘IOC World Bird List’ accepted the split as proposed by the study. (Note: the main research about the “taxonomy of the Subalpine Warbler species complex” between mid-1990s and 2013 is well

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DNA confirms Slender-billed Curlew is a valid species

Slender-billed Curlew (Numenius tenuirostris), Merja Zerga, Morocco, winter 1995 (Chris Gomersall)

The mitochondrial genome of the presumably extinct Slender-billed Curlew is sequenced for the first time. This confirmed that the species is genetically distinct from the related curlews. The Slender-billed Curlew (Numenius tenuirostris) is one of the rarest bird species in the Palearctic region. Despite its rarity, it’s still officially categorized as a “Critically Endangered” species

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North African Buzzard is not a Long-legged but an allospecies of Common Buzzard

North African Buzzard / Buse du Maghreb (Buteo buteo cirtensis), Tinejdad, Morocco (Mustapha Houssaini‎)

The Atlas Long-legged Buzzard is more closely related to Common Buzzard than to Long-legged Buzzard according to a new study. The taxon cirtensis should be treated therefore as an allospecies of the Common Buzzard superspecies. La Buse du Maghreb est une alloespèce de la Buse variable: Selon cette étude, la Buse du Maghreb (cirtensis) est

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Atlas and Balearic crossbills genetic divergence

Atlas Crossbill / Bec-croisé du Maghreb (Loxia curvirostra poliogyna), north-east Algeria (Mourad Harzallah‎).

North African (or Atlas Crossbill) and Balearic crossbills are the most genetically divergent among all Common (Red) Crossbill subspecies in the Western Palearctic according to a new study. This divergence is even greater than between the Common and Parrot crossbills. Parmi toutes les sous-espèces du Bec-croisé des sapins (Loxia curvirostra) dans le Paléarctique occidental, le

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Taxonomic status of ‘long-billed’ Crested Larks at Aousserd?

‘Long-billed’ Crested Lark, probably belonging to the senegallensis group of Galerida cristata, Aousserd, western Sahara, 21 Jan. 2018 (Lars Petersson).

To which taxa belong the ‘crested larks’ observed in the Aousserd region and in the adjacent area of northern Mauritania? First, which species: Maghreb Lark or Crested Lark sensu stricto? And also, which subspecies exactly? À quels taxons appartiennent les «cochevis huppées» observées dans la région d’Aousserd et dans le nord de la Mauritanie ? D’abord,

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