Taxonomic changes?

[XemaSab]

Although it is the duty of the North American Checklist Committee, NACC, an arm of the American Ornithologists' Union, to make and publish additions to and subtractions from the A.O.U. Check-list of North American Birds, there is another arm of the A.O.U.,the South American Checklist Committee, SACC, which works diligently on the official South American Checklist of birds. All discussions and votes are published on their website, http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCRecentChanges.html, and birders are invited to eavesdrop on both the discussions and the final votes of the SACC.

Two recent SACC decisions might be of interest to ABA Area birders. The first is the removal of all Piranga tanagers from the Thraupidae or Tanager Family, and their placement in the Cardinalidae. During a conversation with SACC committee member, Dr. Van Remsen, I asked him about the remaining "tanager", Spindalis. Van, a current member of both NACC and SACC, said that Spindalis is certainly not a tanager. If this thought is upheld by the NACC, we will no longer have any ABA Area representatives left in the Tanager Family, although most of "our" birds will still carry "Tanager" as part of their common names.

My second point is the SACC has voted in favor of changing the name, Common Moorhen, back to the original, Common Gallinule. This change conflicts with the NACC, who recently rejected the same proposal, which would have renamed our moorhen as a gallinule. Had one more member voted in favor of the proposal, Common Moorhen would again be Common Gallinule, whereas birders visiting South America should now properly call the species, Common Gallinule. While in South America, the species is correctly called Common Moorhen, while when birding from Panama north, Common Moorhen. SACC member comments on this subject makes for entertaining reading on the SACC website. See proposal #335.

Anyone may submit a proposal to the SACC, and I assume also to the NACC, but a very strong argument, based on sound genetic studies, will be needed for changes to become accepted to either checklist.

Bill Maynard
Editor - Winging It

http://birding.typepad.com/peeps/2008/06/taxonomic-chang.html

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Augh! We're losing our tanagers! CALL CONGRESS RIGHT F***ING NOW!!!!!1111!!!! :o

[semillama]

1. Wait a goldurn minute!

If they aren't tanagers, then what the hell are they? A new family? Where will they be placed? If Spindalis is not a tanager, then what is it, and where does it go?

Well, at least this will give us an interesting topic to discuss on my trip down to southern ohio with some birding buddies tonight...

[XemaSab]

2. Dude, they're just messed up cardinals

:shrug: