Melanospiza is a genus of Neotropical birds in the tanager family Thraupidae.
| Melanospiza | |
|---|---|
| |
| Black-faced grassquit (Melanospiza bicolor) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Thraupidae |
| Genus: | Melanospiza Ridgway, 1897 |
| Type species | |
| Loxigilla richardsoni Cory, 1886
| |
Taxonomy and species list
editThe genus Melanospiza was introduced in 1897 by the American ornithologist Robert Ridgway with the Saint Lucia black finch as the type species.[1][2] The name combines the Ancient Greek melas meaning "black" and spiza meaning "finch".[3] Although traditionally placed with the buntings and New World sparrows in the family Emberizidae,[2] molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that the genus is a member of the tanager family Thraupidae and belongs to the subfamily Coerebinae which also contains Darwin's finches.[4]
The genus contains the following two species:[5]
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melanospiza richardsoni | Saint Lucia black finch | Saint Lucia | |
| Melanospiza bicolor | Black-faced grassquit | West Indies, northern coasts of Colombia and Venezuela |
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References
edit- ^ Ridgway, Robert (1897). "Birds of the Galapagos Archipelago". Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 19 (1116): 459-670 [466 note]. doi:10.5479/si.00963801.19-1116.459. hdl:2027/mdp.39015068571168. S2CID 84705983.
- ^ a b Paynter, Raymond A. Jr, ed. (1970). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 13. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 160.
- ^ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 248. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ Burns, K.J.; Shultz, A.J.; Title, P.O.; Mason, N.A.; Barker, F.K.; Klicka, J.; Lanyon, S.M.; Lovette, I.J. (2014). "Phylogenetics and diversification of tanagers (Passeriformes: Thraupidae), the largest radiation of Neotropical songbirds". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 75: 41–77. Bibcode:2014MolPE..75...41B. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2014.02.006. PMID 24583021.
- ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2020). "Tanagers and allies". World Bird List Version 10.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
