Aegintha ruficauda subclarescens Mathews

Aegintha ruficauda subclarescens Mathews, 1912a: 431 (North-West Australia (Parry’s Creek)).

Now Neochmia ruficauda subclarescens (Mathews, 1912) . See Mayr et al., 1968: 357; Schodde and Mason, 1999: 752–753; Dickinson, 2003: 732; and Payne, 2010: 354.

HOLOTYPE: AMNH 721950, adult male, collected on Parry Creek, 15.32S, 128.09E (USBGN, 1957), 5 mi west of Trig. Station H.J. 9, East Kimberley, Western Australia, Australia, on 2 February 1909, by J.P. Rogers (no. 617). From the Mathews Collection (no. 3541) via the Rothschild Collection.

COMMENTS: Mathews cited his catalog number of the holotype in the original description and gave the range of subclarescens as ‘‘North-West Australia.’’ The holotype bears, in addition to the original Rogers label, Mathews and Rothschild type labels and a ‘‘Figured’’ label, indicating that it is illustrated in Mathews (1926: 227, pl. 571, opp. p. 226, upper fig., as Bathilda ruficauda). The figured male is said to be the type of subclarescens, but the date of collection is misread from the specimen: the ‘‘F’’ in Feb. is misread as ‘‘7’’ and the ‘‘eb’’ as ‘‘6,’’ so the date is given as ‘‘27 June.’’ The catalog number was correctly given. A single paratype is AMNH 721951 (Mathews no. 3542), female, Parry Creek, 2 February 1909, by J.P. Rogers (no. 616). Other specimens were either never in Mathews’ collection or were cataloged after the publication of subclarescens on 31 January 1912.

Schodde and Mason (1999: 752–753) discussed this species, noting that two names, published at the same time, were available for the northwestern subspecies. As first revisors, they recognized subclarescens, choosing that name over thorpei (see below). Dickinson (2003: 732) followed this. Payne (2010: 354) recognized only two subspecies, clarescens (including subclarescens) and ruficauda .