Islerothraupis, Burns, Kevin J., Unitt, Philip & Mason, Nicholas A., 2016

Burns, Kevin J., Unitt, Philip & Mason, Nicholas A., 2016, A genus-level classification of the family Thraupidae (Class Aves: Order Passeriformes), Zootaxa 4088 (3), pp. 329-354 : 335

8. Islerothraupis , new genus ( Fig. 2 )

Type species. Tanagra cristata Linnaeus, 1766 (currently Tachyphonus cristatus ).

Included species. Islerothraupis cristata , I. luctuosa (d’Orbigny & Lafresnaye, 1837), and I. rufiventer (Spix, 1825) , currently recognized as Tachyphonus cristatus , T. luctuosus , and T. rufiventer . Because the name Islerothraupis is feminine in gender and Tachyphonus is masculine, the endings of two of the specific epithets change to cristata and luctuosa , as do the following subspecific names: T. c. cristatus becomes I. c. cristata , T. c. cristatellus Sclater, 1862, becomes I. c. cristatella, T. c. brunneus (Spix, 1825) becomes I. c. brunnea, T. l. luctuosus becomes I. l. luctuosa , and T. l. nitidissimus Salvin, 1870, becomes I. l. nitidissima . Other specific and subspecific names in this genus are invariable with respect to this change.

Diagnosis. Morphologically, males of these species share glossy black plumage that contrasts with a yellow to bright orange crest or crown patch, as well as a white shoulder patch (either on the outermost scapulars or the upperwing coverts). Tachyphonus surinamus has these characters as well; however, T. surinamus also has pectoral and flank patches that contrast with otherwise black undersides. Additionally, we have identified five unreversed molecular synapomorphies across three genes shared by the proposed Islerothraupis (numbered by their position in the gene alignment). These are, for cyt b: C348A and C360A; for ND2: A661T and T847G; for FGB-I5: C399T. Cladistically, we define this genus as the descendants of the common ancestor of Islerothraupis cristata and Islerothraupis rufiventer .

Etymology. We are pleased to name this clade for Morton L. and Phyllis R. Isler, who published the definitive work on tanagers (Isler & Isler 1999). This detailed, illustrated monograph is an exhaustive treatment of species classified in the Thraupidae at the time, including their identification, ecology, distribution, habitat, and behavior. Although the Islers’ more recent work has been on antbirds (e.g., Isler et al. 1998, 2007, 2014; Zimmer & Isler 2003), their tanager monograph remains a testament of their dedication to expanding our knowledge of Neotropical birds. We form the genus name from their last name, Isler, and the Greek θραυπίς, “a kind of finch mentioned by Aristotle” (Jobling 2010:385), commonly used in ornithology to coin tanager names. Its gender is feminine.

Comments. Molecular phylogenies (Burns & Racicot 2009; Burns et al. 2014) show that all species of the traditional genus Tachyphonus Vieillot, 1816 , belong to the subfamily Tachyphoninae; however, the genus is polyphyletic with respect to the genera Eucometis Sclater, 1856 , Trichothraupis Cabanis, 1850 , Coryphospingus Cabanis, 1851 , Rhodospingus Sharpe, 1888 , Lanio Vieillot, 1816 , and Ramphocelus Desmarest, 1805 ( Fig. 2 ). Tachyphonus cristatus , T. luctuosus , and T. rufiventer form a strongly supported clade (PP = 1.0; ML bootstrap = 100%) that is not closely related to the type species of Tachyphonus ( Tangara rufa Boddaert, 1783 , currently recognized as Tachyphonus rufus ). Instead, the clade containing Tachyphonus cristatus , T. luctuosus , and T. rufiventer is the sister clade to a clade containing the two monospecific genera Eucometis and Trichothraupis . Support for this placement is high (PP = 1.0; ML bootstrap = 100%). Unless a broad genus containing all five of these species is used, a new generic name is needed for the group that includes T. cristatus , T. luctuosus , and T. rufiventer . Accordingly, we provide Islerothraupis for this purpose.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Maximum clade credibility tree from the Bayesian analyses of Burns et al. (2014). Subfamilies Coerebinae and Tachyphoninae shown. Labeling and format as in Fig. 1.