Bananaquit
Encyclopedia
The Bananaquit is a species of passerine
bird
of uncertain relation. It is tentatively placed in the tanager
family
, but classified as incertae sedis
by other authorities such as the American Ornithologists' Union
. Its classification is debated, and it is often placed in its own family: Coerebidae. It has recently been suggested the Bananaquit should be split
into three species, but this has yet to receive widespread recognition. This small, active nectarivore
is found in warmer parts of the Americas
, and is generally common.
in his Systema Naturae in 1758 as Certhia flaveola. It was reclassified as the only member of the genus Coereba by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot
in 1809. Prior to 2005 the Bananaquit was assigned to the monotypic family Coerebidae; there is currently no agreement to which family it belongs; some authors place it into the Emberizidae
. Since recent studies have shed some light on the Bananaquit's affinities, many authorities consider Coerebidae an obsolete taxon
. The Coerebidae used to contain other nectar-eating birds from the tropical Americas, but these have since been moved. The Bananaquit is part of a group that includes the Darwin's finches
, Tiaris
(grassquits), Loxigilla
, etc.—most of which were previously placed in Emberizidae, but are now known to actually be part of the Thraupidae. As such this species is tentatively placed in the Thraupidae family unless a study suggests more accurate placement. Nevertheless, its precise relations remain unresolved, so the American Ornithologists' Union thus classes it as species incertae sedis
.
It is still unclear if any of the island subspecies
actually should be elevated to species, but phylogenetic
studies by Seutin et al. and Bellemain et al. have revealed three clade
s: The nominate group from Jamaica
, Hispaniola
and the Cayman Islands
, the bahamensis group from the Bahamas and Quintana Roo
, and the bartholemica group from South
and Central America
, Mexico
(except Quintana Roo), the Lesser Antilles
and Puerto Rico
. Several taxa were not sampled, but most of these are easily placed in the above groups based on zoogeography
alone. Exceptions are oblita (San Andrés Island
) and tricolor (Providencia Island
), and their placement is therefore uncertain. Bellemain et al. suggested that the two taxa, bahamensis and bartholemica, be split, and in February 2010, the International Ornithological Congress
listed as proposed splits from C. flaveola.
The Bananaquit is a small bird, although there is some degree of size variation across the various subspecies. Length can range from 7.5 to 12.5 cm (3 to 4.9 in). Weight ranges from 5.5 to 19 g (0.194006791578116 to 0.670205279997127 ).
Most subspecies of the Bananaquit have dark grey (almost black) upperparts, black crown and sides of the head, a prominent white eyestripe, grey throat, white vent, and yellow chest, belly and rump.
The sexes are alike, but juveniles are duller and often have a partially yellow eyebrow and throat. In the subspecies bahamensis and caboti from the Bahamas and Cozumel
, respectively, the throat and upper chest are white or very pale grey, while ferryi from La Tortuga Island
has a white forehead.
The subspecies laurae, lowii and melanornis from small islands off northern Venezuela
are overall blackish, while the subspecies aterrima and atrata from Grenada
and Saint Vincent
have two plumage morphs, one "normal" and another blackish. The pink gape
is usually very prominent in the subspecies from islands in the Caribbean Sea
.
It cannot hover like a hummingbird
, and must always perch while feeding. It will also eat fruit and insects. It often visits gardens and may become very tame. Its nickname, the sugar bird, comes from its affinity for bowls or bird feeders stocked with granular sugar, a common method of attracting these birds.
The Bananaquit builds a spherical lined nest with a side entrance hole, laying up to three eggs, which are incubated solely by the female.
It is resident in tropical South America north to southern Mexico and the Caribbean
. It is found throughout the West Indies, except Cuba
. Birds from the Bahamas are rare visitors to Florida
.
It occurs in a wide range of open to semi-open habitats, including gardens and parks, but it is rare or absent in deserts, dense forests (e.g. large parts of the Amazon Rainforest
) and at altitudes above 2000 metres (6,561.7 ft).
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
of uncertain relation. It is tentatively placed in the tanager
Tanager
The tanagers comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has an American distribution.There were traditionally about 240 species of tanagers, but the taxonomic treatment of this family's members is currently in a state of flux...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, but classified as incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...
by other authorities such as the American Ornithologists' Union
American Ornithologists' Union
The American Ornithologists' Union is an ornithological organization in the USA. Unlike the National Audubon Society, its members are primarily professional ornithologists rather than amateur birders...
. Its classification is debated, and it is often placed in its own family: Coerebidae. It has recently been suggested the Bananaquit should be split
Lumpers and splitters
Lumping and splitting refers to a well-known problem in any discipline which has to place individual examples into rigorously defined categories. The lumper/splitter problem occurs when there is the need to create classifications and assign examples to them, for example schools of literature,...
into three species, but this has yet to receive widespread recognition. This small, active nectarivore
Nectarivore
In zoology, nectarivore is an animal which eats the sugar-rich nectar produced by flowering plants. Most nectarivores are insects or birds, but there are also nectarivorous mammals, notably several species of bats in the Southwestern United States and Mexico, as well as the Australian Honey Possum...
is found in warmer parts of the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, and is generally common.
Taxonomy
The Bananaquit was first described by LinnaeusCarolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
in his Systema Naturae in 1758 as Certhia flaveola. It was reclassified as the only member of the genus Coereba by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot
Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot
Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot was a French ornithologist.Vieillot described a large number of birds for the first time, especially those he encountered during the time he spent in the West Indies and North America, and 26 genera established by him are still in use...
in 1809. Prior to 2005 the Bananaquit was assigned to the monotypic family Coerebidae; there is currently no agreement to which family it belongs; some authors place it into the Emberizidae
Emberizidae
The Emberizidae are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill.In Europe, most species are called buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the sparrows, the...
. Since recent studies have shed some light on the Bananaquit's affinities, many authorities consider Coerebidae an obsolete taxon
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
. The Coerebidae used to contain other nectar-eating birds from the tropical Americas, but these have since been moved. The Bananaquit is part of a group that includes the Darwin's finches
Darwin's finches
Darwin's finches are a group of 14 or 15 species of passerine birds. It is still not clear which bird family they belong to, but they are not related to the true finches. They were first collected by Charles Darwin on the Galápagos Islands during the second voyage of the Beagle...
, Tiaris
Tiaris
Tiaris is a genus of songbirds in the tanager family , containing the bulk of the grassquits. In late 20th century sources in particular, it was very often allied to the American sparrows and placed in the Emberizidae family....
(grassquits), Loxigilla
Loxigilla
Loxigilla is the genus of Antillean bullfinches, birds in the Thraupidae family. Sometimes classified in the bunting and American sparrow family Emberizidae, more recent studies have shown it to belong in the tanager family....
, etc.—most of which were previously placed in Emberizidae, but are now known to actually be part of the Thraupidae. As such this species is tentatively placed in the Thraupidae family unless a study suggests more accurate placement. Nevertheless, its precise relations remain unresolved, so the American Ornithologists' Union thus classes it as species incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...
.
It is still unclear if any of the island subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
actually should be elevated to species, but phylogenetic
Phylogenetics
In biology, phylogenetics is the study of evolutionary relatedness among groups of organisms , which is discovered through molecular sequencing data and morphological data matrices...
studies by Seutin et al. and Bellemain et al. have revealed three clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
s: The nominate group from Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
and the Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
, the bahamensis group from the Bahamas and Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Quintana Roo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 10 municipalities and its capital city is Chetumal....
, and the bartholemica group from South
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
(except Quintana Roo), the Lesser Antilles
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America...
and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. Several taxa were not sampled, but most of these are easily placed in the above groups based on zoogeography
Zoogeography
Zoogeography is the branch of the science of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution of animal species.-External links:*: A course outline and collection of Web resources by Dr. Taylor, UBC...
alone. Exceptions are oblita (San Andrés Island
San Andrés (island)
San Andrés is a coral island among the Colombian islands in the Caribbean Sea; it is the largest island of the southern group of islands. Together with the nearby island of Providencia and some smaller islands of the southern group of the Colombian archipelago, San Andrés forms the department of...
) and tricolor (Providencia Island
Providencia Island
Isla de Providencia or Old Providence is a mountainous Caribbean island. Though it is closer to Nicaragua, it is part of the Archipelago of San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina, a department of Colombia, lying midway between Costa Rica and Jamaica...
), and their placement is therefore uncertain. Bellemain et al. suggested that the two taxa, bahamensis and bartholemica, be split, and in February 2010, the International Ornithological Congress
International Ornithological Congress
The International Ornithological Congress series forms the oldest and largest international series of meetings of ornithologists. It is organised by the International Ornithological Committee, a group of about 200 ornithologists...
listed as proposed splits from C. flaveola.
Subspecies
- C. flaveola alleni Lowe, 1912
- C. flaveola aterrima (Lesson, 1830)
- C. flaveola atrata (Lawrence, 1878)
- C. flaveola bahamensis (Reichenbach, 1853)
- C. flaveola bananivora (Gmelin, 1789)
- C. flaveola barbadensis (Baird, 1873)
- C. flaveola bartholemica (Sparrman, 1788)
- C. flaveola bolivari Zimmer & Phelps, 1946
- C. flaveola bonairensis Voous, 1955
- C. flaveola caboti (Baird, 1873)
- C. flaveola caucae Chapman, 1914
- C. flaveola cerinoclunis Bangs, 1901
- C. flaveola chloropyga (Cabanis, 1850)
- C. flaveola columbiana (Cabanis, 1866)
- C. flaveola dispar Zimmer, 1942
- C. flaveola ferryi Cory, 1909
- C. flaveola flaveola (Linnaeus, 1758)
- C. flaveola frailensis Phelps & Phelps Jr, 1946
- C. flaveola gorgonae Thayer & Bangs, 1905
- C. flaveola guianensis (Cabanis, 1850)
- C. flaveola intermedia (Salvadori & Festa, 1899)
- C. flaveola laurae Lowe, 1908
- C. flaveola lowii Cory, 1909
- C. flaveola luteola (Cabanis, 1850)
- C. flaveola magnirostris (Taczanowski, 1880)
- C. flaveola melanornis Phelps & Phelps 1954
- C. flaveola mexicana (Sclater, 1857)
- C. flaveola minima (Bonaparte, 1854)
- C. flaveola montana Lowe, 1912
- C. flaveola nectarea Wetmore, 1929
- C. flaveola newtoni (Baird, 1873)
- C. flaveola oblita Griscom, 1923
- C. flaveola obscura Cory, 1913
- C. flaveola pacifica Lowe, 1912
- C. flaveola portoricensis (Bryant, 1866)
- C. flaveola roraimae Chapman, 1929
- C. flaveola sharpei (Cory, 1886)
- C. flaveola tricolor (Ridgway, 1884)
- C. flaveola uropygialis Berlepsch, 1892
Description
Most subspecies of the Bananaquit have dark grey (almost black) upperparts, black crown and sides of the head, a prominent white eyestripe, grey throat, white vent, and yellow chest, belly and rump.
The sexes are alike, but juveniles are duller and often have a partially yellow eyebrow and throat. In the subspecies bahamensis and caboti from the Bahamas and Cozumel
Cozumel
Cozumel is an island in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen, and close to the Yucatan Channel. Cozumel is one of the ten municipalities of the state of Quintana Roo...
, respectively, the throat and upper chest are white or very pale grey, while ferryi from La Tortuga Island
La Tortuga Island
La Tortuga Island is an uninhabited island dependent on the government of Venezuela. It is part of a chain of islands that include the Tortuguillas, the Palaquines, and others. Has an area of 156 km²-History:...
has a white forehead.
The subspecies laurae, lowii and melanornis from small islands off northern Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
are overall blackish, while the subspecies aterrima and atrata from Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
and Saint Vincent
Saint Vincent (island)
Saint Vincent is a volcanic island in the Caribbean. It is the largest island of the chain called Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, between Saint Lucia and Grenada. It is composed of partially submerged volcanic mountains...
have two plumage morphs, one "normal" and another blackish. The pink gape
Gape
In bird anatomy, the gape is the interior of the open mouth of a bird and the gape flange is the region where the two mandibles join together, at the base of the beak...
is usually very prominent in the subspecies from islands in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
.
Behaviour
It has a slender, curved bill, adapted to taking nectar from flowers. It sometimes pierces flowers from the side, taking the nectar without pollinating the plant.It cannot hover like a hummingbird
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
, and must always perch while feeding. It will also eat fruit and insects. It often visits gardens and may become very tame. Its nickname, the sugar bird, comes from its affinity for bowls or bird feeders stocked with granular sugar, a common method of attracting these birds.
The Bananaquit builds a spherical lined nest with a side entrance hole, laying up to three eggs, which are incubated solely by the female.
Distribution
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. It is found throughout the West Indies, except Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. Birds from the Bahamas are rare visitors to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
It occurs in a wide range of open to semi-open habitats, including gardens and parks, but it is rare or absent in deserts, dense forests (e.g. large parts of the Amazon Rainforest
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
) and at altitudes above 2000 metres (6,561.7 ft).
External links
- Bananaquit videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Stamps (with range map)
- Bananaquit sounds on xeno-canto.org