The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus Tyrannus. These have a different anatomy of the syrinx musculature than the oscines (songbirds of the larger suborder Passeri), hence the common name of suboscines.

Tyranni
Dusky-capped flycatcher (Myiarchus tuberculifer)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Clade: Eupasseres
Suborder: Tyranni
Infraorders

The suboscines originated in South America about 50 million years ago[1] and dispersed into the Old World likely via a trans-Atlantic route during the Oligocene.[2] Their presence in the early Oligocene of Europe is well documented by several fossil specimens.[3]

Systematics edit

The suborder Tyranni is divided into two infraorders: the Eurylaimides and the Tyrannides. The New Zealand wrens in the family Acanthisittidae are placed in a separate suborder Acanthisitti.[4]

The phylogenetic relationships of the 16 families in the Tyranni suborder is shown below. The cladogram is based on a large molecular genetic study by Carl Oliveros and collaborators published in 2019:[4] The families and the species numbers are from the list maintained by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC).[5]

Tyranni
Eurylaimides

Philepittidae – 4 species (asities)

Eurylaimidae – 9 species (eurylaimid broadbills)

Calyptomenidae – 6 species (Asian green broadbills)

Sapayoidae – 1 species (sapayoa)

Pittidae – 44 species (pittas)

Tyrannides
Tyrannida

Pipridae – 55 species (manakins)

Cotingidae – 66 species (cotingas)

Tityridae – 45 species (titras, becards)

Tyrannidae – 447 species (tyrant flycatchers)

Furnariida

Melanopareiidae – 5 species (crescentchests)

Conopophagidae – 12 species (gnateaters)

Thamnophilidae – 238 species (antbirds)

Grallariidae – 68 species (antpittas)

Rhinocryptidae – 65 species (tapaculos)

Formicariidae – 12 species (antthrushes)

Furnariidae – 315 species (ovenbirds)

The Eurylaimides contain the Old World suboscines – mainly distributed in tropical regions around the Indian Ocean – and a single American species, the sapayoa:[4]

The Tyrannides contain all the suboscines from the Americas except the broad-billed sapayoa. The families listed here are those recognised by the International Ornithologists' Union.[5]

This group has been separated into three parvorders by Sibley & Ahlquist. However, DNA:DNA hybridization did not reliably resolve the suboscine phylogeny. It was eventually determined that there was a simple dichotomy between the antbirds and allies (tracheophones), and the tyrant-flycatchers and allies.[6] Given that the "parvorder" arrangement originally advanced is obsolete (see e.g. Irestedt et al. 2002 for tracheophone phylogeny) — more so if the Eurylaimides are elevated to a distinct suborder — it is better to rank the clades as superfamilies or, if the broadbill group is considered a separate suborder, as infraorders. In the former case, the name Furnarioidea would be available for the tracheophones, whereas "Tyrannoidea", the "bronchophone" equivalent, has not yet been formally defined.[7] In the latter case, the tracheophones would be classified as "Furnariides",[8] while the Tyrannides would be restricted to the tyrant-flycatchers and other "bronchophone" families.

The tracheophones contain the Furnariidae, Thamnophilidae, Formicariidae (probably including most tapaculos), and Conopophagidae. The tyrant-flycatcher clade includes the namesake family, the Tityridae, the Cotingidae, and the Pipridae.

References edit

  1. ^ Claramunt, S.; Cracraft, J. (2015). "A new time tree reveals Earth history's imprint on the evolution of modern birds". Science Advances. 1 (11): e1501005. doi:10.1126/sciadv.1501005. PMC 4730849.
  2. ^ Selvatti, A. P.; Galvão, A.; Mayr, G.; Miyaki, C. Y.; Russo, C A. de Moraes (2022). "Southern hemisphere tectonics in the Cenozoic shaped the pantropical distribution of parrots and passerines". Journal of Biogeography. 49 (10): 1753–1766. doi:10.1111/jbi.14466.
  3. ^ Bochenski, Z. M.; Tomek, T.; Bujoczek, M.; Salwa, G. (2021). "A new passeriform (Aves: Passeriformes) from the early Oligocene of Poland sheds light on the beginnings of Suboscines". Journal of Ornithology. 162 (2): 593–604. doi:10.1007/s10336-021-01858-0.
  4. ^ a b c Oliveros, C.H.; et al. (2019). "Earth history and the passerine superradiation". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 116 (16): 7916–7925. doi:10.1073/pnas.1813206116. PMC 6475423. PMID 30936315.
  5. ^ a b Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2023). "Family Index". IOC World Bird List Version 13.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  6. ^ A conceivable vernacular name would be "bronchophones". This would parallel the German vernacular names, Luftröhrenschreier (tracheophones) and Bronchienschreier (bronchophones).
  7. ^ And thus should not be used without quotation marks.
  8. ^ See remark at "Tyrannoidea". This peculiarity is explained by the fact that Sibley & Ahlquist's analyses erroneously suggested an overly complex phylogeny for the tracheophones, and a much simpler one for the tyrant-flycatchers and allies.

Further reading edit