Iberian chiffchaff

Iberian chiffchaff
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Phylloscopidae
Genus: Phylloscopus
Species: P. ibericus
Binomial name
Phylloscopus ibericus
Ticehurst, 1937

The Iberian chiffchaff (Phylloscopus ibericus) is a species of leaf warbler endemic to Portugal, Spain and North Africa, west of a line stretching roughly from the western Pyrenees via the mountains of central Spain to the Mediterranean.

Taxonomy and etymology

The name "chiffchaff" is onomatopoeic, referring to the repetitive chiff-chaff song of the common chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita).[2] There are similar names in some other European languages, such as the Dutch Tjiftjaf, the German Zilpzalp and Welsh siff-saff.

The genus name Phylloscopus is from Ancient Greek phullon, "leaf", and skopos, "seeker" (from skopeo, "to watch"). The specific ibericus is Latin for "Iberian".[3]

Previously the Iberian chiffchaff was considered as a subspecies of the common chiffchaff. As of 2016, it is recognised as a separate species under the name Phylloscopus ibericus[4] for the following reasons (compared to the common chiffchaff):[5]

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2012). "Phylloscopus ibericus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. ↑ Cocker, Mark; Mabey, Richard (2005). Birds Britannica. London: Chatto & Windus. pp. 378–9. ISBN 0-7011-6907-9.
  3. ↑ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 201, 305. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  4. ↑ Sangster, George; Knox, Alan G.; Helbig, Andreas J. & Parkin, David T. (2002): "Taxonomic recommendations for European birds." Ibis 144(1): 153–159.
  5. ↑ Helbig, A. J.; Martens, J.; Seibold, I.; Henning, F.; Schottler, B. & Wink, M. (1996): Phylogeny and species limits in the Palearctic Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita complex: mitochondrial genetic differentiation and bioacoustic evidence. Ibis 138(4): 650–666.

Further reading


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/8/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.