Graucalus sumatrensis difficilis Hartert

LeCROY, M. A. R. Y., 2003, TYPE SPECIMENS OF BIRDS IN THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY. PART 5. PASSERIFORMES: ALAUDIDAE, HIRUNDINIDAE, MOTACILLIDAE, CAMPEPHAGIDAE, PYCNONOTIDAE, IRENIDAE, LANIIDAE, VANGIDAE, BOMBYCILLIDAE, DULIDAE, CINCLIDAE, TROGLODYTIDAE, AND MIMIDAE, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 278 (278), pp. 1-156 : 61

Graucalus sumatrensis difficilis Hartert

Graucalus sumatrensis difficilis Hartert, 1895: 470 (Balabac) .

Now Coracina striata difficilis ( Hartert, 1895) . See Dickinson et al., 1991: 276, Dickinson and Dekker, 2002a: 11, and Dickinson et al., 2002a: 35.

SYNTYPES: AMNH 561282 , adult male, 24 December 1893 ; and AMNH 561283 , adult female, 25 December 1893, both collected on Balabac Island , 07°57′N, 117°01′E ( Dickinson et al., 1991: 415), Philippine Islands, by Alfred Everett. From the Rothschild Collection .

COMMENTS: These were the only two specimens in the type series ( Hartert, 1895: 470). Hartert (1922b: 372) listed the male as the type, and this would ordinarily give lectotype status to that specimen. However, in this case the date of collection quoted is that of the female, and in the original description, the more boldly and regularly barred undertail coverts of the female G. s. dificilis are stressed. Also, contrary to his usual practice when a lectotype was designated, Hartert attached type labels to both of these specimens, and they were both cataloged as types at AMNH. I think that he perhaps made an error in transcribing data, including only partial data for each specimen, and that he meant to retain both specimens as syntypes, as he did in other taxa within Coracina .