Summary

The definition of ‘species’ isn’t as simple as you might think. In this episode, we look at the methods ornithologists use to identify and name bird species. And we discuss the challenges they face in this work.

We begin by highlighting the reasons that scientists need to classify birds into species.

Next, we get into several definitions of ‘species’ and the pros and cons of these.

We then look at several case studies of birds to see how they’ve been classified.

Research Citations

• Phylogeny and taxonomy of the Socorro parakeet (Psittacara holochlorus brevipes) (Martinez-Gomez, Matias-Ferrer, and Escalante-Pliego. 2017. Journal of Ornithology)
• Complex biogeographic history of a Holarctic passerine (Drovetski et al. 2004. Proceedings of the Royal Society B)
• Cryptic speciation in a Holarctic passerine revealed by genetic and bioacoustic analyses (Toews and Irwin. 2008. Molecular Ecology)

• Plumage Genes and Little Else Distinguish the Genomes of Hybridizing Warblers (Toews et al. 2016. Current Biology)

Photos of some birds mentioned

Attributions

• Socorro Parakeet - Recording XC430698 on Xeno Canto
• Eurasian Wren- Recording XC461185 on Xeno Canto
• Blue-winged Warbler - Recording XC320361 on Xeno Canto

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