Cyanistes
| Cyanistes | ||||||||||||
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Blue tit ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Cyanistes | ||||||||||||
| Kaup , 1829 |
Cyanistes is a genus of birdsinthe tit family (Paridae). The genus includes only two generally recognized species , the blue tit and the glaucous tit . Some authors also assign the great tit and the white- fronted tit to this genus.
The species of this genus were classically assigned to the genus Parus , only since the beginning of the 21st century has cyanistes been widely accepted as an independent genus.
The small tits of this genus are native to the temperate latitudes of Europe and Asia as well as to the north of Africa.
Systematics
Traditionally, all species of the tit family with two atypical exceptions were grouped together in the genus Parus . A molecular genetic investigation carried out in 2005 of the relationship relationships of the tits, which analyzed the mitochondrial gene sequence of the cytochrome b gene, has now led to the recognition of a division of the genus Parus by the British Ornithologists' Union . This investigation showed that the species of the genus Cyanistes were the first to split off from the remaining "former" Parus species.
For the two generally recognized species of this genus, some authors recognize a subspecies group or a subspecies as a further species. In the case of the blue tit, these are the subspecies Cyanistes teneriffae , native to the Canary Islands , which are also known as the "African blue tit" (for further details see blue tit ).
In the case of the glaucous tit, this is the yellow-breasted tit ( Cyanistes flavipectus ), which was regarded as a separate species due to its morphological characteristics. However, molecular genetic studies could not confirm the species status of the yellow-breasted tit.
species
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Cyanistes
- Blue tit ( C. caeruleus )
- Canary Tit ( Cyanistes teneriffae ), was classically seen as con-specific to the blue tit.
- Glaucous tit ( C. cyanus )
- Yellow-breasted tit ( C. flavipectus ), is usually considered a subspecies of the glaucous tit
literature
- Manfred Föger, Karin Pegoraro: The blue tit . Neue Brehm Bücherei, Hohenwarsleben 2004, ISBN 3-89432-862-2
- Josep del Hoyo et al .: Handbook of the Birds of the World. (HBW), Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2007, ISBN 84-96553-42-6 .
