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Anthochaera
Genus of birds From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Anthochaera is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family. The species are endemic to Australia and include the little wattlebird, the red wattlebird, the western wattlebird, and the yellow wattlebird. A molecular phylogenetic study has shown that the regent honeyeater also belongs in this genus.
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Description
Of the five species in the genus only the yellow wattlebird (Anthochaera paradoxa) and the red wattlebird (A. carunculata) have the wattles of their common name.[2] These are bare fleshy appendages, usually wrinkled and often brightly coloured, hanging from the cheeks, neck or throat, and presumably serving for display.
A common name for species of the genus is wattlebird, a term also used for unrelated avian species.
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Taxonomy
The genus Anthochaera was introduced in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield.[3] The name is derived from the Greek anthos meaning flower or bloom and khairō meaning to enjoy.[4] The type species was designated as the little wattlebird by the German ornithologist Hans Friedrich Gadow in 1884.[5][6]
The regent honeyeater (Anthochaera phrygia) was formerly placed in its own genus, Xanthomyza, but placed with the Anthochaera genus in a 2004 molecular phylogenetic study.[7][8] The genus Anthochaera is sister group to the species Acanthagenys rufogularis, the spiny-cheeked honeyeater, separated as a monotypic genus.[9]
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| Cladogram showing the relationship between species.[9] |
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Species and distribution
The genus Anthochaera contains the following species:[8]
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See also
References
External links
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