Eremomela

Eremomela
Black-necked eremomela (Eremomela atricollis) in Sakania, DR Congo
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Cisticolidae
Genus: Eremomela
Sundevall, 1850
Type species
Sylvia flaviventris[1]
Burchell, 1822

The eremomelas are a genus, Eremomela, of passerines in the cisticola family Cisticolidae. The genus was previously placed with the larger Old World warbler family Sylviidae prior to that genus being broken up into several families. The genus contains eleven species, all of which are found in sub-Saharan Africa. They occupy a range of habitats, from arid scrub to lowland tropical forest. They are intermediate in appearance between crombecs and apalis, and measure between 8.5 to 12 cm (3.3–4.7 in) in length. The sexes are alike in size and plumage.[2]

The genus was erected by the Swedish zoologist Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1850. The type species is the yellow-bellied eremomela (Eremomela icteropygialis).[3][4] The word Eremomela comes from the Ancient Greek erēmos for "desert" and melos for "song" or "melody".[5]

Species

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The genus contains 10 species:[6]

Image Common Name Scientific Name Distribution
Yellow-bellied eremomela Eremomela icteropygialis Africa south of the Sahara
Yellow-vented eremomela Eremomela flavicrissalis Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda.
Senegal eremomela Eremomela pusilla southern Mauritania and Senegal to north western Cameroon, south-western Chad and far north-western Central African Republic
Green-backed eremomela Eremomela canescens Kenya and Ethiopia to Cameroon.
Green-capped eremomela Eremomela scotops Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Republic of the Congo, DRC, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe
Karoo eremomela Eremomela gregalis Namibia and South Africa.
Burnt-necked eremomela Eremomela usticollis Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Rufous-crowned eremomela Eremomela badiceps African tropical rainforest.
Turner's eremomela Eremomela turneri Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya and Uganda.
Black-necked eremomela Eremomela atricollis Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia.

References

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  1. ^ "Cisticolidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  2. ^ Madge, Steve (2006), "Family Sylviidae (Old World Warblers)", in del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Christie, David (eds.), Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 11, Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 683–685, ISBN 978-84-96553-06-4
  3. ^ Sundevall, Carl Jakob (1850). "Eremomela". Öfversigt Af Kongl. Vetenskaps-akademiens Forhandlingar (in Swedish). 7: 102.
  4. ^ Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1986). Check-list of Birds of the World. Vol. 11. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 196.
  5. ^ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 148. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  6. ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2017). "Grassbirds, Donacobius, Malagasy warblers, cisticolas & allies". World Bird List Version 7.3. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 26 August 2017.