''Iridosornis'' is a genus of Neotropical birds in the tanager family Thraupidae These birds live in the Andes mostly at high altitudes. Their plumage is mainly blue and all of them have contrasting patches of yellow.

Taxonomy and species list

The genus ''Iridosornis'' was introduced in 1844 by the French naturalist

René Lesson René-Primevère Lesson (20 March 1794 – 28 April 1849) was a French surgeon, naturalist, ornithologist, and herpetologist. Biography Lesson was born at Rochefort, and entered the Naval Medical School in Rochefort at the age of sixteen. He ...

with the

golden-crowned tanager The golden-crowned tanager (''Iridosornis rufivertex'') is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest Montane ecosys ...

as the type species. The name combines the Ancient Greek ''iris'' meaning "rainbow" with ''ornis'' meaning "bird". A

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study published in 2014 found that this genus had a sister relationship to the

vermilion tanager The vermilion tanager (''Calochaetes coccineus'') is a species of Neotropical bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is the only member of the genus ''Calochaetes''. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Its natural habitat is subtro ...

which is placed in its own monospecific genus ''Calochaetes''. The genus contains five species:

References

Bird genera Taxa named by René Lesson {{Thraupidae-stub