Aeronautes
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White-breasted Swift ( Aeronautes saxatalis ) |
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| Hartert , 1892 |
Aeronautes is a genus of birdsinthe sailor family (Apodidae). The birds of thegenus, which areonly found in the New World , are small to medium-sized sailors. Of the three species in the genus, two are resident birds and are restricted to South America. A population of the third species, the white-breasted swift , also breeds in North America and migrates to Central America in the winter.
features
The body length is between 13 and 18 centimeters. All species show a piebald plumage. The body shape of the genus is not dissimilar to the Apus species of the ancient world . The inner arm wings are comparatively long, the length of the arm wings decreases towards the outside, resulting in a characteristic wing shape. The tail of the white-breasted swift and especially of the Andean swift is clearly forked, while the mountain swift shows only an indistinct tail fork.
Systematics
Ernst Hartert justified the introduction of this genus in 1892 with the fact that the white-breasted swift (then Panyptila melanoleuca ), which had been added to this new genus when the genus Panyptila was separated, had clear differences in plumage and the shape of the tail compared to the other Panyptila species. Even if little was known about the nest building of the white-breasted swift at Hartert's time, he also saw clear differences to the peculiar nest building of the genus Panyptila . However, Hartert made a mistake when naming the species because he named the species Aëronautes melanoleucus ( Baird , 1854). According to the International Rules for Zoological Nomenclature , Acanthylis saxatilis by Dr. Samuel Washington Woodhouse takes precedence. Hartert was aware of this fact. In his footnote, he noted that Woodhouse's description was inconsistent with his experience and that none of Woodhouse's collection could be found.
In 1956, David Lack assigned the Andean sailors, which originally belonged to the Apus species, to the genus Aeronautes . RK Brooke confirmed this assignment in 1970, but found that the two other species of the genus, i.e. the white-breasted and mountain swift, are more closely related than with the Andean swift.
The following species and subspecies are included in the genus:
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White-breasted Swift ( Aeronautes saxatalis ) ( Woodhouse , 1853)
- Aeronautes saxatalis saxatalis ( Woodhouse , 1853)
- Aeronautes saxatalis nigrior ( Dickey & van Rossem , 1928)
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Mountain sailor ( Aeronautes montivagus ) ( d'Orbigny & Lafresnaye , 1837)
- Aeronautes montivagus montivagus ( d'Orbigny & Lafresnaye , 1837)
- Aeronautes montivagus tatei ( Chapman , 1929)
- Andean swift ( Aeronautes andecolus ) ( d'Orbigny & Lafresnaye , 1837)
literature
- Phil Chantler, Gerald Driessens: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World. Pica Press, Mountfield 2000, ISBN 1-873403-83-6
- Family Cyselidæ (By Ernst Hartert) , Catalog of the Birds in the British Museum, Vol 16, 1892, pp. 434-518, (Aeronautes p. 459 f)
Individual evidence
- ↑ This and all information not specially marked are taken from the following source: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World . Page 196, see literature
- ↑ Ernst Hartert: Family Cyselidæ. In: Catalog of the Birds in the British Museum. Vol 16, p. 459f ( online )
- ↑ Chantler, Driessens: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World . Page 25, see literature
Web links
- Aeronautes on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species.