The eremomelas are a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

, ''Eremomela'', of passerines in the cisticola family

Cisticolidae The family Cisticolidae is a group of about 160 warblers, small passerine birds found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. They were formerly included within the Old World warbler family Sylviidae. This family probably originated ...

. The genus was previously placed with the larger

Old World warbler Old World warblers are a large group of birds formerly grouped together in the bird family Sylviidae. The family held over 400 species in over 70 genera, and were the source of much taxonomic confusion. Two families were split out initially, the ci ...

family

Sylviidae Sylviidae is a family of passerine birds that includes the typical warblers and a number of babblers formerly placed within the Old World babbler family. They are found in Eurasia and Africa. Taxonomy and systematics The scientific name Sylviid ...

prior to that genus being broken up into several families. The genus contains eleven species, all of which are found in sub-Saharan

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. They occupy a range of habitats, from arid scrub to lowland tropical forest. They are intermediate in appearance between

crombec ''Sylvietta'', the crombecs, is a genus of African warblers. Formerly placed in the massively paraphyletic Sylviidae, it is now considered to belong to a newly recognized family found only in Africa, Macrosphenidae The African warblers are a ...

s and

apalis The apalises are small passerine birds belonging to the genus ''Apalis'', in the family Cisticolidae. They are found in forest, woodlands and scrub across most parts of sub-Saharan Africa. They are slender birds with long tails and have a slender ...

, and measure between in length. The sexes are alike in size and

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

. The genus was erected by the Swedish zoologist

Carl Jakob Sundevall Carl Jakob Sundevall (22 October 1801, Högestad – 2 February 1875) was a Swedish zoologist. Sundevall studied at Lund University, where he became a Ph.D. in 1823. After traveling to East Asia, he studied medicine, graduating as Doctor of Med ...

in 1850. The

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

is the

yellow-bellied eremomela The yellow-bellied eremomela (''Eremomela icteropygialis'') is an Old World warbler. However, the taxonomy of the "African warblers", an assemblage of usually species-poor and apparently rather ancient "odd warblers" from Africa is currently in ...

(''Eremomela icteropygialis''). The word ''Eremomela'' comes from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

''erēmos'' for "desert" and ''melos'' for "song" or "melody".

Species

The genus contains 11

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

: *

Yellow-bellied eremomela The yellow-bellied eremomela (''Eremomela icteropygialis'') is an Old World warbler. However, the taxonomy of the "African warblers", an assemblage of usually species-poor and apparently rather ancient "odd warblers" from Africa is currently in ...

(''Eremomela icteropygialis'') *

Salvadori's eremomela Salvadori's eremomela (''Eremomela salvadorii'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the Old World warbler assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in Zaire, Gabon, Angola and Zambia. Its name commemorates Italian ...

(''Eremomela salvadori'') *

Yellow-vented eremomela The yellow-vented eremomela (''Eremomela flavicrissalis'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in dry savannas in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, a ...

(''Eremomela flavicrissalis'') *

Senegal eremomela The Senegal eremomela (''Eremomela pusilla'') is a member of the African warbler family, the Cisticolidae. It occurs in the savannas of western Sub-Saharan Africa. Taxonomy The Senegal eremomela was described by the German ornithologist Gusta ...

(''Eremomela pusilla'') *

Green-backed eremomela The green-backed eremomela (''Eremomela canescens'') is a member of the Cisticolidae. This bird is a common resident breeder in tropical Africa from Kenya and Ethiopia to Cameroon. This tiny passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order ...

(''Eremomela canescens'') *

Green-capped eremomela The green-capped eremomela or greencap eremomela (''Eremomela scotops'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. Range and habitat It is found in Angola, Botswana, B ...

(''Eremomela scotops'') *

Karoo eremomela The Karoo eremomela (''Eremomela gregalis''), also known as the yellow-rumped eremomela, is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in Namibia and South Afric ...

(''Eremomela gregalis'') *

Burnt-necked eremomela The burnt-necked eremomela (''Eremomela usticollis'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, ...

(''Eremomela usticollis'') *

Rufous-crowned eremomela The rufous-crowned eremomela (''Eremomela badiceps'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found throughout the African tropical rainforest. References ...

(''Eremomela badiceps'') *

Turner's eremomela Turner's eremomela (''Eremomela turneri'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya and Uganda. Its natural habit ...

(''Eremomela turneri'') *

Black-necked eremomela The black-necked eremomela (''Eremomela atricollis'') is a species of bird formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now placed in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia. Its ...

(''Eremomela atricollis'')

References

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Cisticolidae-stub