''Larvivora'' is 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 ...

of small

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by t ...

birds belonging to the Old World flycatcher family

Muscicapidae The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, Bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica)'' and Norther ...

that occur in central and eastern Asia. The seven species in this genus were all previously placed in other genera. A large

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 on 2010 found that the genera ''

Luscinia ''Luscinia '' is a genus of smallish passerine birds, containing the nightingales and relatives. Formerly classed as members of the thrush family Turdidae, they are now considered to be Old World flycatchers (Muscicapidae) of the chat subfamily ...

'' and ''

Erithacus ''Erithacus'' (Greek: "robin" (erithacos)) is a genus of passerine bird that contains a single extant species, the European robin ''(Erithacus rubecula)''. The Japanese robin and Ryukyu robin were also placed in this genus (as ''Erithacus akahige ...

'' as defined by Edward C. Dickinson in 2003 were not

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

. The genus ''Larvivora'' with 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 ...

''Larvivora cyane'' was reinstated to accommodate a well-defined

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

. Although the rufous-headed robin was not included in the phylogenetic study, it was moved to the resurrected genus as it is similar in structure, song and behaviour to the Indian blue robin and the

Siberian blue robin The Siberian blue robin (''Larvivora cyane'') is a small passerine bird that was formerly classified as a member of the thrush family, Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to belong to the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae. It ...

. The genus ''Larvivora'' had been introduced by the British naturalist

Brian Houghton Hodgson Brian Houghton Hodgson (1 February 1800 or more likely 1801 – 23 May 1894) was a pioneer naturalist and ethnologist working in India and Nepal where he was a British Resident. He described numerous species of birds and mammals from the Himala ...

in 1837. The word ''Larvivora'' comes from the

new Latin New Latin (also called Neo-Latin or Modern Latin) is the revival of Literary Latin used in original, scholarly, and scientific works since about 1500. Modern scholarly and technical nomenclature, such as in zoological and botanical taxonomy ...

''larva'' meaning caterpillar and ''-vorus'' meaning eating (''vorace'' to devour). The genus includes the following species: * Indian blue robin, (''Larvivora brunnea'') (formerly in ''Luscinia'') *

, (''Larvivora cyane'') (formerly in ''Luscinia'') * Rufous-tailed robin, (''Larvivora sibilans'') (formerly in ''Luscinia'') *

Ryukyu robin The Ryukyu robin (''Larvivora komadori'') is a bird endemic to the Ryūkyū Islands, of Japan. The Okinawa robin (''Larvivora namiyei'') previously was considered a subspecies. The specific name ''komadori'' is, somewhat confusingly, the co ...

, (''Larvivora komadori'') (formerly in ''Erithacus'') * Okinawa robin, (''Larvivora namiyei'') *

Japanese robin The Japanese robin (''Larvivora akahige'') is a small passerine bird in the family Muscicapidae. This species was formerly named ''Erithacus akahige'', or ''Komadori''. Its range extends from the south of the Kuril and Sakhalin Islands througho ...

, (''Larvivora akahige'') (formerly in ''Erithacus'') * Rufous-headed robin, (''Larvivora ruficeps'') (formerly in ''Luscinia'')

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q10784792 Bird genera Taxa named by Brian Houghton Hodgson