A passerine () is any
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
of the
order Passeriformes (; from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
'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
the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching.
With more than 140 families and some 6,500 identified species,
Passeriformes is the largest
clade of birds and among the most diverse clades of terrestrial
vertebrate
Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () (chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, with c ...
s, representing 60% of birds.
[Ericson, P.G.P. et al. (2003]
Evolution, biogeography, and patterns of diversification in passerine birds
''J. Avian Biol'', 34:3–15.[Selvatti, A.P. et al. (2015]
"A Paleogene origin for crown passerines and the diversification of the Oscines in the New World"
''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'', 88:1–15. Passerines are divided into three clades:
Acanthisitti
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
(New Zealand wrens),
Tyranni
The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''.
These have a different anatomy of the syrinx mus ...
(suboscines), and
Passeri
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
(oscines or songbirds).
The passerines contain several groups of
brood parasites such as the
viduas,
cuckoo-finch
The cuckoo-finch (''Anomalospiza imberbis''), also known as the parasitic weaver or cuckoo weaver, is a small passerine bird now placed in the family Viduidae with the indigobirds and whydahs. It occurs in grassland in Africa south of the Sahara. ...
es, and the
cowbird
Cowbirds are birds belonging to the genus ''Molothrus'' in the family Icteridae. They are of New World origin, and are obligate brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other species.
The genus was introduced by English naturalist Will ...
s. Most passerines are
omnivorous
An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nut ...
, while the
shrikes are
carnivorous.
The terms "passerine" and "Passeriformes" are derived from the
scientific name of the
house sparrow, ''Passer domesticus'', and ultimately from the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
term ''passer'', which refers to sparrows and similar small birds.
Description
The order is divided into three suborders,
Tyranni
The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''.
These have a different anatomy of the syrinx mus ...
(suboscines),
Passeri
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
(oscines or songbirds), and the
basal Acanthisitti
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
. Oscines have the best control of their
syrinx muscles among birds, producing a wide range of
songs
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...
and other vocalizations, though some of them, such as the
crow
A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...
s, do not sound musical to human beings. Some, such as the
lyrebird
A lyrebird is either of two species of ground-dwelling Australian birds that compose the genus ''Menura'', and the family Menuridae. They are most notable for their impressive ability to mimic natural and artificial sounds from their environ ...
, are accomplished mimics. The
New Zealand wren
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
s are tiny birds restricted to
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, at least in modern times; they were long placed in Passeri.
![PasserinePterylosis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/PasserinePterylosis.jpg)
Most passerines are smaller than typical members of other avian orders. The heaviest and altogether largest passerines are the
thick-billed raven
The thick-billed raven (''Corvus crassirostris''), a corvid from the Horn of Africa, shares with the common raven the distinction of being the largest bird in the corvid family, and indeed the largest of the passerines. The thick-billed raven a ...
and the larger races of
common raven
The common raven (''Corvus corax'') is a large all-black passerine bird. It is the most widely distributed of all corvids, found across the Northern Hemisphere. It is a raven known by many names at the subspecies level; there are at least ...
, each exceeding and . The
superb lyrebird
The superb lyrebird (''Menura novaehollandiae'') is an Australian songbird, one of two species from the family Menuridae. It is one of the world's largest songbirds, and is renowned for its elaborate tail and courtship displays, and its excell ...
and some
birds-of-paradise
The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species are found in eastern Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and eastern Australia. The family has 44 species in 17 genera. The members of ...
, due to very long tails or tail coverts, are longer overall. The smallest passerine is the
short-tailed pygmy tyrant, at and .
Anatomy
The foot of a passerine has three toes directed forward and one toe directed backward, called
anisodactyl
In biology, dactyly is the arrangement of digits (fingers and toes) on the hands, feet, or sometimes wings of a tetrapod animal. It comes from the Greek word δακτυλος (''dáktylos'') = "finger".
Sometimes the ending "-dactylia" is use ...
arrangement, and the hind toe (
hallux
Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being '' digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being '' pl ...
) joins the leg at approximately the same level as the front toes. This arrangement enables passerine birds to easily perch upright on branches. The toes have no webbing or joining, but in some
cotinga
The cotingas are a large family, Cotingidae, of suboscine passerine birds found in Central America and tropical South America. Cotingas are birds of forests or forest edges, that are primary frugivorous. They all have broad bills with hooked t ...
s, the second and third toes are united at their basal third.
The leg of passerine birds contains an additional special adaptation for perching. A tendon in the rear of the leg running from the underside of the toes to the muscle behind the
tibiotarsus
The tibiotarsus is the large bone between the femur and the tarsometatarsus in the leg of a bird. It is the fusion of the proximal part of the tarsus with the tibia.
A similar structure also occurred in the Mesozoic Heterodontosauridae. These s ...
will automatically be pulled and tighten when the leg bends, causing the foot to curl and become stiff when the bird lands on a branch. This enables passerines to sleep while perching without falling off.
Most passerine birds have 12 tail feathers but the
superb lyrebird
The superb lyrebird (''Menura novaehollandiae'') is an Australian songbird, one of two species from the family Menuridae. It is one of the world's largest songbirds, and is renowned for its elaborate tail and courtship displays, and its excell ...
has 16, and several spinetails in the family
Furnariidae have 10, 8, or even 6, as is the case of
Des Murs's wiretail. Species adapted to tree trunk climbing such as
woodcreeper
The woodcreepers (Dendrocolaptinae) comprise a subfamily of suboscine passerine birds endemic to the Neotropics. They have traditionally been considered a distinct family Dendrocolaptidae, but most authorities now place them as a subfamily of th ...
and
treecreepers
The treecreepers are a family, Certhiidae, of small passerine birds, widespread in wooded regions of the Northern Hemisphere and sub-Saharan Africa. The family contains eleven species in two genera, ''Certhia'' and ''Salpornis''. Their plumage ...
have stiff tail feathers that are used as props during climbing. Extremely long tails used as sexual ornaments are shown by species in different families. A well-known example is the
long-tailed widowbird
The long-tailed widowbird (''Euplectes progne''), also known as the "sakabula", is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae.Mackworth-Praed, C.W., and C.H. Grant. (1960). ''Birds of Eastern and North Eastern Africa''. Longmans, Green and Co LTD. ...
.
Eggs and nests
The chicks of passerines are
altricial
In biology, altricial species are those in which the young are underdeveloped at the time of birth, but with the aid of their parents mature after birth. Precocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the mome ...
: blind, featherless, and helpless when hatched from their eggs. Hence, the chicks require extensive parental care. Most passerines lay colored eggs, in contrast with nonpasserines, most of whose eggs are white except in some ground-nesting groups such as
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
and
nightjar
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk tal ...
s, where camouflage is necessary, and in some
parasitic
Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...
cuckoo
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separ ...
s, which match the passerine host's egg. The
vinous-throated parrotbill has two egg colors, white and blue, to deter the brood parasitic
common cuckoo
The common cuckoo (''Cuculus canorus'') is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, Cuculiformes, which includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals.
This species is a widespread summer migrant to Europe and Asia, and winters in Africa. I ...
.
Clutches vary considerably in size: some larger passerines of Australia such as lyrebirds and scrub-robins lay only a single egg, most smaller passerines in warmer climates lay between two and five, while in the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, hole-nesting species like
tits can lay up to a dozen and other species around five or six.
The family
Viduidae
__NOTOC__
The indigobirds and whydahs, together with the cuckoo-finch, make up the family Viduidae; they are small passerine birds native to Africa.
These are finch-like species which usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage ...
do not build their own nests, instead, they lay eggs in other birds' nests.
Origin and evolution
The evolutionary history of the passerine families and the relationships among them remained rather mysterious until the late 20th century. In many cases, passerine families were grouped together on the basis of morphological similarities that, it is now believed, are the result of
convergent evolution
Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...
, not a close genetic relationship. For example, the
wrens of the Americas and Eurasia,
those of Australia, and
those of New Zealand, look superficially similar and behave in similar ways, yet belong to three far-flung branches of the passerine family tree; they are as unrelated as it is possible to be while remaining Passeriformes.
Advances in
molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...
and improved
paleobiogeographical data gradually are revealing a clearer picture of passerine origins and evolution that reconciles molecular affinities, the constraints of morphology and the specifics of the fossil record.
The first passerines are now thought to have evolved in
Gondwana (in the
Southern Hemisphere) in the late
Paleocene
The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pal ...
or early
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...
, around 50 million years ago.
The initial split was between the
New Zealand wren
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
s (
Acanthisittidae
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
) and all other passerines (
Eupasserine), and the second split involved the
Tyranni
The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''.
These have a different anatomy of the syrinx mus ...
(suboscines) and the
Passeri
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
(oscines or songbirds).
[ A rupture of the Gondwanan continent caused the core split of the Eupasseres, which were divided into these groups, one in Western Gondwana (Tyranni) and the other in Eastern Gondwana (Passeri).][ Passeri experienced a great radiation of forms out of the ]Australian continent
The continent of Australia, sometimes known in technical contexts by the names Sahul (), Australia-New Guinea, Australinea, Meganesia, or Papualand to distinguish it from the country of Australia, is located within the Southern and East ...
. A major branch of the Passeri, parvorder
Order ( la, ordo) is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and ...
Passerida
Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri (standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder). While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorde ...
, expanded deep into Eurasia and Africa, where a further explosive radiation of new lineages occurred. This eventually led to three major Passerida
Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri (standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder). While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorde ...
lineages comprising about 4,000 species, which in addition to the Corvida
The "Corvida" were one of two "parvorders" contained within the suborder Passeri, as proposed in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, the other being Passerida. Standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder.
More recent rese ...
and numerous minor lineages make up songbird diversity today. Extensive biogeographical mixing happens, with northern forms returning to the south, southern forms moving north, and so on.[
]
Fossil record
Earliest passerines
Perching bird osteology, especially of the limb bones, is rather diagnostic.[
][ However, the early fossil record is poor because the first Passeriformes were relatively small, and their delicate bones did not preserve well. ]Queensland Museum
The Queensland Museum is the state museum of Queensland, dedicated to natural history, cultural heritage, science and human achievement. The museum currently operates from its headquarters and general museum in South Brisbane with specialist m ...
specimens F20688 (carpometacarpus
The carpometacarpus is a bone found in the hands of birds. It results from the fusion of the carpal and metacarpal bone, and is essentially a single fused bone between the wrist and the knuckles. It is a smallish bone in most birds, generally flat ...
) and F24685 (tibiotarsus
The tibiotarsus is the large bone between the femur and the tarsometatarsus in the leg of a bird. It is the fusion of the proximal part of the tarsus with the tibia.
A similar structure also occurred in the Mesozoic Heterodontosauridae. These s ...
) from Murgon, Queensland
Murgon is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Murgon had a population of 2,378 people.
Geography
Murgon is in the region of Queensland known as the South Burnett, the southern ...
, are fossil bone fragments initially assigned to Passeriformes
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 th ...
.[ However, the material is too fragmentary and their affinities have been questioned. Several more recent fossils from the Oligocene of Europe, such as '' Wieslochia'', '' Jamna'', '' Resoviaornis'' and '' Crosnoornis'', are more complete and definitely represent early passeriforms, although their exact position in the evolutionary tree is not known.
From the Bathans Formation at the ]Manuherikia River
The Manuherikia River is located in Otago in the South Island of New Zealand. It rises in the far north of the Maniototo, with the West Branch draining the eastern side of the St Bathans Range, and the East Branch draining the western flanks of t ...
in Otago, New Zealand, MNZ S42815 (a distal right tarsometatarsus of a tui-sized bird) and several bones of at least one species of saddleback-sized bird have recently been described. These date from the Early to Middle Miocene
Awamoan
to Lillburnian
While also using the international geologic time scale, many nations–especially those with isolated and therefore non-standard prehistories–use their own systems of dividing geologic time into epochs and faunal stages. In New Zealand, these epo ...
, 19–16 mya).
Early European passerines
In Europe, perching birds are not too uncommon in the fossil record from the Oligocene onward, but most are too fragmentary for a more definite placement:
* '' Wieslochia'' (Early Oligocene of Frauenweiler, Germany)
* '' Resoviaornis'' (Early Oligocene of Wola Rafałowska, Poland)
* '' Jamna'' (Early Oligocene of Jamna Dolna, Poland)
* '' Winnicavis'' (Early Oligocene of Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland)
* '' Crosnoornis'' (Early Oligocene of Poland)
* Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Early Oligocene of Luberon, France) – suboscine or basal
* Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Late Oligocene of France) – several suboscine and oscine taxa
* Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Middle Miocene of France and Germany) – basal?
* Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Sajóvölgyi Middle Miocene of Mátraszőlős, Hungary) – at least 2 taxa, possibly 3; at least one probably Oscines.
* Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Middle Miocene of Felsőtárkány, Hungary) – oscine?
*Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Late Miocene of Polgárdi, Hungary) – Sylvioidea
Sylvioidea is a superfamily of passerine birds, one of at least three major clades within the Passerida along with the Muscicapoidea and Passeroidea. It contains about 1300 species including the Old World warblers, Old World babblers, swallows ...
(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 Sylvii ...
? Cettiidae
Cettiidae is a newly validated family of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers"), formerly placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" assemblage. It contains the typical bush warblers (''Cettia'') and their relatives. As a common name, cetti ...
?)[
That suboscines expanded much beyond their region of origin is proven by several fossil from Germany such as a broadbill (]Eurylaimidae
The Eurylaimidae are a family of suboscine passerine birds that occur from the eastern Himalayas to Indonesia and the Philippines.
The family previously included the sapayoa from the Neotropics, the asities from Madagascar, and the Calyptomeni ...
) humerus fragment from the Early Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
(roughly 20 mya) of Wintershof, Germany, the Late Oligocene carpometacarpus
The carpometacarpus is a bone found in the hands of birds. It results from the fusion of the carpal and metacarpal bone, and is essentially a single fused bone between the wrist and the knuckles. It is a smallish bone in most birds, generally flat ...
from France listed above, and '' Wieslochia'', among others. Extant Passeri super-families were quite distinct by that time and are known since about 12–13 mya when modern genera were present in the corvoidean and basal songbirds. The modern diversity of Passerida genera is known mostly from the Late Miocene onwards and into the Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58[Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...](_blank)
and early Holocene
The Holocene ( ) is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years Before Present (), after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene togeth ...
lagerstätten (<1.8 mya) yield numerous extant species, and many yield almost nothing but extant species or their chronospecies
A chronospecies is a species derived from a sequential development pattern that involves continual and uniform changes from an extinct ancestral form on an evolutionary scale. The sequence of alterations eventually produces a population that is p ...
and paleosubspecies.
American fossils
In the Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
, the fossil record is more scant before the Pleistocene, from which several still-existing suboscine families are documented. Apart from the indeterminable MACN
The Bernardino Rivadavia Natural Sciences Argentine Museum ( es, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia) is a public museum located in the Caballito, Buenos Aires, Caballito section of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
History and ov ...
-SC-1411 (Pinturas Early/Middle Miocene of Santa Cruz Province, Argentina), an extinct lineage of perching birds has been described from the Late Miocene of California, United States: the Palaeoscinidae with the single genus '' Palaeoscinis''. ''"Palaeostruthus" eurius'' (Pliocene of Florida) probably belongs to an extant family, most likely passeroidea
Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri (standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder). While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorde ...
n.
Systematics and taxonomy
The Passeriformes is currently divided into three suborders: Acanthisitti
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
(New Zealand wrens), Tyranni
The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''.
These have a different anatomy of the syrinx mus ...
(suboscines) and Passeri
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
(oscines or songbirds). The Passeri is now subdivided into two major groups recognized now as Corvides and Passerida
Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri (standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder). While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorde ...
respectively containing the large superfamilies Corvoidea
Corvoidea is a superfamily of birds in the order of Passeriformes.
Systematics
Corvoidea contains the following families:
* Vireonidae – vireos
* Rhipiduridae – fantails
* Dicruridae – drongos
* Monarchidae – monarch flycatchers
* If ...
and Meliphagoidea
__NOTOC__
Meliphagoidea is a superfamily of passerine birds. They contain a vast diversity of small to mid-sized songbirds widespread in the Austropacific region. The Australian Continent has the largest richness in genera and species.
Systemat ...
, as well as minor lineages, and the superfamilies Sylvioidea
Sylvioidea is a superfamily of passerine birds, one of at least three major clades within the Passerida along with the Muscicapoidea and Passeroidea. It contains about 1300 species including the Old World warblers, Old World babblers, swallows ...
, Muscicapoidea, and Passeroidea
Passerida is, under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri (standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder). While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorde ...
but this arrangement has been found to be oversimplified. Since the mid-2000s, literally, dozens of studies have investigated the phylogeny
A phylogenetic tree (also phylogeny or evolutionary tree Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA.) is a branching diagram or a tree showing the evolutionary relationships among various biological spe ...
of the Passeriformes and found that many families from Australasia
Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologi ...
traditionally included in the Corvoidea actually represent more basal lineages within oscines. Likewise, the traditional three-superfamily arrangement within the Passeri has turned out to be far more complex and will require changes in classification.
Major "wastebin
A waste container, also known as a dustbin, garbage can, and trash can is a type of container that is usually made out of metal or plastic. The words "rubbish", "basket" and "bin" are more common in British English usage; "trash" and "can" a ...
" families such as the 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 ...
s and Old World babbler
The Old World babblers or Timaliidae are a family of mostly Old World passerine birds. They are rather diverse in size and coloration, but are characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in S ...
s have turned out to be paraphyletic and are being rearranged. Several taxa turned out to represent highly distinct lineages, so new families had to be established, some of them – like the stitchbird of New Zealand and the Eurasia
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
n bearded reedling
The bearded reedling (''Panurus biarmicus'') is a small, sexually dimorphic reed-bed passerine bird. It is frequently known as the bearded tit, due to some similarities to the long-tailed tit, or the bearded parrotbill. It is the only species ...
– monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...
with only one living species.[The former does not even have recognized subspecies, while the latter is one of the most singular birds alive today. Good photos of a bearded reedling are for exampl]
here
an
here
. In the Passeri alone, a number of minor lineages will eventually be recognized as distinct superfamilies. For example, the kinglet
A kinglet is a small bird in the family Regulidae. Species in this family were formerly classified with the Old World warblers. "Regulidae" is derived from the Latin word ''regulus'' for "petty king" or prince, and refers to the coloured crowns ...
s constitute a single genus with less than 10 species today but seem to have been among the first perching bird lineages to diverge as the group spread across Eurasia. No particularly close relatives of them have been found among comprehensive studies of the living Passeri, though they might be fairly close to some little-studied tropical Asian groups. Nuthatch
The nuthatches () constitute a genus, ''Sitta'', of small passerine birds belonging to the family Sittidae. Characterised by large heads, short tails, and powerful bills and feet, nuthatches advertise their territory using loud, simple songs. M ...
es, wrens, and their closest relatives are currently grouped in a distinct super-family Certhioidea
Certhioidea is a superfamily belonging to the infraorder Passerida containing wrens and their allies. It was proposed in 2004 by Cracraft and colleagues to house a clade of four families that were removed from the superfamily Sylvioidea.
Cla ...
.
Taxonomic list of Passeriformes families
This list is in taxonomic order, placing related families next to one another. The families listed are those recognised by the International Ornithologists' Union
The International Ornithologists' Union, formerly known as the International Ornithological Committee, is a group of about 200 international ornithologists, and is responsible for the International Ornithological Congress and other international ...
(IOC).[ The order and the division into infraorders, parvorders and superfamilies follows the phylogenetic analysis published by Carl Oliveros and colleagues in 2019.] The relationships between the families in the suborder Tyranni (suboscines) were all well determined but some of the nodes in Passeri (oscines or songbirds) were unclear owing to the rapid splitting of the lineages.[
]
Suborder Acanthisitti
:::* Acanthisittidae
The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...
: New Zealand wrens
Suborder
Tyranni
The Tyranni (suboscines) are a suborder of passerine birds that includes more than 1,000 species, the large majority of which are South American. It is named after the type genus '' Tyrannus''.
These have a different anatomy of the syrinx mus ...
(suboscines)
Infraorder Eurylaimides
Eurylaimides (Old World suboscines) is a clade of passerine birds that are distributed in tropical regions around the Indian Ocean and a single American species, the sapayoa. This group is divided into five families The families listed here are ...
: Old World suboscines
Infraorder Tyrannides
Tyrannides (New World suboscines) is a clade of passerine birds that are endemic of America.Ohlson, J.I. ''et al''. (2013Phylogeny and classification of the New World suboscines (Aves, Passeriformes) ''Zootaxa'', 3613:1-35. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa. ...
: New World suboscines
Parvorder Furnariida
Parvorder Tyrannida
Suborder
Passeri
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
(oscines or songbirds)
:::* Atrichornithidae: scrub-birds
:::* Menuridae: lyrebirds
:::* Climacteridae
There are seven species of Australasian treecreeper in the passerine bird family Climacteridae. They are medium-small, mostly brown birds with patterning on their underparts, and all are endemic to Australia-New Guinea. They resemble, but are n ...
: Australian treecreepers
:::* Ptilonorhynchidae
Bowerbirds () make up the bird family Ptilonorhynchidae. They are renowned for their unique courtship behaviour, where males build a structure and decorate it with sticks and brightly coloured objects in an attempt to attract a mate.
The family ...
: bowerbirds
:::* Maluridae
The Australasian wrens are a family, Maluridae, of small, insectivorous passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. While commonly known as wrens, they are unrelated to the true wrens. The family comprises 32 species (including sixteen ...
: fairywrens, emu-wrens and grasswrens
:::* Dasyornithidae
The bristlebirds are a family of passerine birds, Dasyornithidae. There are three species in one genus, ''Dasyornis''. The family is endemic to the south-east coast and south-west corner of Australia.Del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (edit ...
: bristlebirds
:::* Pardalotidae: pardalotes
:::* Acanthizidae
The Acanthizidae—known as Australian warblers—are a family of passerine birds which includes gerygones, the thornbills ''Acanthiza'', and the scrubwrens of ''Sericornis''. The Acanthizidae family consists of small to medium passerine birds, ...
: scrubwrens, thornbills, and gerygones
:::* Meliphagidae
The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family, Meliphagidae, of small to medium-sized birds. The family includes the Australian chats, myzomelas, friarbirds, wattlebirds, miners and melidectes. They are most common in Australia and New Gu ...
: honeyeaters
:::* Pomatostomidae
The Pomatostomidae (Australo-Papuan or Australasian babblers, also known as pseudo-babblers) are small to medium-sized birds endemic to Australia-New Guinea. For many years, the Australo-Papuan babblers were classified, rather uncertainly, with t ...
: pseudo-babblers
:::* Orthonychidae
The logrunners (''Orthonyx'') are a clade of birds which comprises three species of passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. Some authorities consider the Australian family Cinclosomatidae to be part of the Orthonychidae. The three ...
: logrunners
* Infraorder Corvides – previously known as the parvorder Corvida
The "Corvida" were one of two "parvorders" contained within the suborder Passeri, as proposed in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, the other being Passerida. Standard taxonomic practice would place them at the rank of infraorder.
More recent rese ...
[
:::* ]Cinclosomatidae
Cinclosomatidae is a family of passerine birds native to Australia and New Guinea. It has a complicated taxonomic history and different authors vary in which birds they include in the family. It includes the quail-thrushes and jewel-babblers.
Ta ...
: jewel-babblers, quail-thrushes
:::* Campephagidae: cuckooshrikes and trillers
:::* Mohouidae
''Mohoua'' is a small genus of three bird species endemic to New Zealand. The scientific name is taken from ''mohua'' – the Māori name for the yellowhead.''"Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds"; Volume 7'', edited by Peter ...
: whiteheads
:::* Neosittidae: sittellas
::*Superfamily Orioloidea
:::* Psophodidae
Psophodidae is a family of passerine birds native to Australia and nearby areas. It has a complicated taxonomic history and different authors vary in which birds they include in the family. In the strictest sense, it includes only the 5 or 6 spec ...
: whipbirds
:::* Eulacestomatidae: wattled ploughbill
:::* Falcunculidae: shriketit
:::* Oreoicidae: Australo-Papuan bellbirds
:::* Paramythiidae: painted berrypeckers
:::* Vireonidae
The vireos make up a family, Vireonidae, of small to medium-sized passerine birds found in the New World (Canada to Argentina, including Bermuda and the West Indies) and Southeast Asia. "Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migratory bir ...
: vireos
:::* Pachycephalidae: whistlers
:::* Oriolidae: Old World orioles and figbirds
::*Superfamily Malaconotoidea
__NOTOC__
Malaconotoidea is a superfamily of passerine birds. They contain a vast diversity of omnivorous and carnivorous songbirds widespread in Africa and Australia, many of which superficially resemble shrikes. It was defined and named by Cacr ...
:::* Machaerirhynchidae: boatbills
:::* Artamidae: woodswallows, butcherbirds, currawongs, and Australian magpie
:::* Rhagologidae: mottled berryhunter
:::* Malaconotidae: puffback shrikes, bush shrikes, tchagras, and boubous
:::* Pityriaseidae
The Bornean bristlehead (''Pityriasis gymnocephala''), also variously known as the bristled shrike, bald-headed crow or the bald-headed wood-shrike, is the only member of the passerine family (biology), family Pityriasidae and genus ''Pityriasi ...
: bristlehead
:::* Aegithinidae: ioras
:::* Platysteiridae
Platysteiridae is a family of small, stout passerine birds of the African tropics. The family contains the wattle-eyes, batises and shrike-flycatchers. They were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flycatchers, Muscicapidae. These ...
: wattle-eyes and batises
:::* Vangidae: vangas
::*Superfamily Corvoidea
Corvoidea is a superfamily of birds in the order of Passeriformes.
Systematics
Corvoidea contains the following families:
* Vireonidae – vireos
* Rhipiduridae – fantails
* Dicruridae – drongos
* Monarchidae – monarch flycatchers
* If ...
:::* Rhipiduridae
The family Rhipiduridae are small insectivorous birds of Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent that includes the fantails and silktails.
Taxonomy and systematics
There are four genera classified within the family:
* Subfamily ...
: fantails
:::* Dicruridae: drongos
:::* Monarchidae: monarch flycatchers
:::* Ifritidae
The blue-capped ifrit (''Ifrita kowaldi''), also known as the blue-capped ifrita, is a small and insectivorous passerine species currently placed in the monotypic family, Ifritidae. Previously, the ifrit has been placed in a plethora of families ...
: blue-capped ifrit
:::* Paradisaeidae
The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species are found in eastern Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and eastern Australia. The family has 44 species in 17 genera. The members of this ...
: birds-of-paradise
:::* Corcoracidae
Corcoracidae is a family of passerine birds known as the Australian mudnesters. The family has sometimes been called Struthideidae in the past; however, despite Struthideidae being an older name than Corcoracidae, the latter name takes precedence ...
: white-winged chough and apostlebird
:::* Melampittidae
The melampittas are a family, Melampittidae, of New Guinean birds containing two enigmatic species. The two species are found in two genera, the greater melampitta in the genus ''Megalampitta'' and the lesser melampitta in the genus ''Melampitta ...
: melampittas
:::* Laniidae: shrikes
:::* Platylophidae: jayshrike
:::* Corvidae
Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers. In colloquial English, they are known as the crow family or corvids. Cu ...
: crows, ravens, and jays
* Infraorder Passerides
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...
– previously known as the parvorder Passerida[
:::* ]Cnemophilidae
The satinbirds or cnemophilines, are a family, Cnemophilidae of passerine birds which consists of four species found in the mountain forests of New Guinea. They were originally thought to be part of the birds-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae unti ...
: satinbirds
:::* Melanocharitidae
The Melanocharitidae, the berrypeckers and longbills, is a small bird family restricted to the forests of New Guinea. The family contains eleven species in four (sometimes three) genera. They are small songbirds with generally dull plumage but a ...
: berrypeckers and longbills
:::* Callaeidae: New Zealand wattlebirds
:::* Notiomystidae
The stitchbird or hihi (''Notiomystis cincta'') is a honeyeater-like bird endemic to the North Island and adjacent offshore islands of New Zealand. Its evolutionary relationships have long puzzled ornithologists, but it is now classed as th ...
: stitchbird
:::* Petroicidae
The bird family Petroicidae includes 51 species in 19 genera. All are endemic to Australasia: New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand and numerous Pacific Islands as far east as Samoa. For want of an accurate common name, the family is often called th ...
: Australian robins
:::* Eupetidae: rail-babbler
:::* Picathartidae: rockfowl
:::* Chaetopidae: rock-jumpers
:* Parvorder Sylviida – previously known as the superfamily Sylviodea[
:::* ]Hyliotidae
The hyliotas are a genus, ''Hyliota'', of passerine bird from Africa. The taxonomic position of the genus has been a longstanding mystery. They have been formerly regarded as Old World warblers in the family Sylviidae, or related to the batises an ...
: hyliotas
:::* Stenostiridae: fairy flycatchers
:::* Paridae
The tits, chickadees, and titmice constitute the Paridae, a large family of small passerine birds which occur mainly in the Northern Hemisphere and Africa. Most were formerly classified in the genus ''Parus''.
Members of this family are common ...
: tits, chickadees and titmice
:::* Remizidae: penduline tits
:::* Panuridae: bearded reedling
:::* Alaudidae
Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...
: larks
:::* Nicatoridae
The nicators are a genus, ''Nicator'', and family, Nicatoridae, of songbirds endemic to Africa. The genus and family contain three species.
Taxonomy
The systematic affinities of the genus have been a long-standing mystery. The group was origina ...
: nicators
:::* Macrosphenidae
The African warblers are a newly erected family Macrosphenidae, of songbirds. Most of the species were formerly placed in the Old World warbler family Sylviidae, although one species, the rockrunner, was placed in the babbler family, Timaliidae. ...
: crombecs and African warblers
:::* 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 originate ...
: cisticolas and allies
::*Superfamily Locustelloidea
:::* Acrocephalidae
The Acrocephalidae (the reed warblers, marsh- and tree-warblers, or acrocephalid warblers) are a family of oscine passerine birds, in the superfamily Sylvioidea.
The species in this family are usually rather large "warblers". Most are rather p ...
: reed warblers, Grauer's warbler and allies
:::* Locustellidae: grassbirds and allies
:::* Donacobiidae: black-capped donacobius
:::* Bernieridae
The Tetrakas and allies are a newly validated family of songbirds. They were formally named Bernieridae in 2010. The family currently consists of eleven species (in eight genera) of small forest birds. These birds are all endemic to Madagascar ...
: Malagasy warblers
:::—
:::* Pnoepygidae
''Pnoepyga'' is a genus of passerines endemic to southern and southeastern Asia. Its members are known as cupwings or wren-babblers. The genus contains four species. The genus has long been placed in the babbler family Timaliidae. A 2009 study o ...
: wren-babblers
:::* Hirundinidae
The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...
: swallows and martins
::*Superfamily Sylvioidea
Sylvioidea is a superfamily of passerine birds, one of at least three major clades within the Passerida along with the Muscicapoidea and Passeroidea. It contains about 1300 species including the Old World warblers, Old World babblers, swallows ...
:::* Pycnonotidae
The bulbuls are members of a family, Pycnonotidae, of medium-sized passerine songbirds, which also includes greenbuls, brownbuls, leafloves, and bristlebills. The family is distributed across most of Africa and into the Middle East, tropical ...
: bulbuls
:::* 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 Sylvii ...
: sylviid babblers
:::* Paradoxornithidae
The parrotbills are a family, Paradoxornithidae, of passerine birds that are primarily native to East and Southeast Asia (with a single species in western North America), though feral populations exist elsewhere. They are generally small, long-t ...
: parrotbills and myzornis
:::* Zosteropidae
The white-eyes are a family, Zosteropidae, of small passerine birds native to tropical, subtropical and temperate Sub-Saharan Africa, southern and eastern Asia, and Australasia. White-eyes inhabit most tropical islands in the Indian Ocean, the ...
: white-eyes
:::* Timaliidae: tree babblers
:::* Leiothrichidae
The laughingthrushes are a family, Leiothrichidae, of Old World passerine birds. They are diverse in size and coloration. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. The entire fam ...
: laughingthrushes and allies
:::* Alcippeidae
''Alcippe'' is a genus of passerine birds in the monotypic family Alcippeidae. The genus once included many other fulvettas and was previously placed in families Pellorneidae or Timaliidae.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Alcippe'' previously included m ...
: Alcippe fulvettas
:::* Pellorneidae: ground babblers
::*Superfamily Aegithaloidea
:::* Phylloscopidae
Leaf warblers are small insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus ''Phylloscopus''.
Leaf warblers were formerly included in the Old World warbler family but are now considered to belong to the family Phylloscopidae, introduced in 200 ...
: leaf-warblers and allies
:::* Hyliidae
Hyliidae is a family of passerine birds which contains just two species, the green hylia (''Hylia prasina'') and the tit hylia (''Pholidornis rushiae''). Physiological similarities and molecular phylogenetic studies strongly support the creati ...
: hylias
:::* Aegithalidae
The bushtits or long-tailed tits, are a family, Aegithalidae, of small passerine birds with long tails, compared to their size. The family contains 13 species in three genera, all but one of which are found in Eurasia. Bushtits are active birds, ...
: long-tailed tits or bushtits
:::* Scotocercidae: streaked scrub warbler
:::* Cettiidae
Cettiidae is a newly validated family of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers"), formerly placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" assemblage. It contains the typical bush warblers (''Cettia'') and their relatives. As a common name, cetti ...
: Cettia bush warblers and allies
:::* Erythrocercidae
''Erythrocercus'' is a genus of birds containing three flycatchers that are found in Africa.
The genus is placed in its own family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or af ...
: yellow flycatchers
:* Parvorder Muscicapida – previously known as the superfamily Muscicapoidea[
::*Superfamily ]Bombycilloidea
Bombycilloidea is a superfamily of passerine birds that contains ten living species. They are found in North, Central America, most of the Palearctic, the Arabian Peninsula, the islands of Hispaniola and Sulawesi, and formerly the Hawaiian Islan ...
:::* Dulidae
The palmchat (''Dulus dominicus'') is a small, long-tailed passerine bird, the only species in the genus ''Dulus'' and the family Dulidae endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti). It is rela ...
: palmchat
:::* Bombycillidae
The waxwings are three species of passerine birds classified in the genus ''Bombycilla''. They are pinkish-brown and pale grey with distinctive smooth plumage in which many body feathers are not individually visible, a black and white eyestri ...
: waxwings
:::* Ptiliogonatidae
The silky-flycatchers are a small family, Ptiliogonatidae, of passerine birds. The family contains only four species in three genera. They were formerly lumped with waxwings and hypocolius in the family Bombycillidae, and they are listed in tha ...
: silky flycatchers
:::* Hylocitreidae
The hylocitrea (''Hylocitrea bonensis''), also known as the yellow-flanked whistler or olive-flanked whistler, is a species of bird that is endemic to montane forests on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.Boles, W. E. (2007). Yellow-flanked Whistl ...
: hylocitrea
:::* Hypocoliidae
The grey hypocolius or simply hypocolius (''Hypocolius ampelinus'') is a small passerine bird species. It is the sole member of the genus ''Hypocolius'' and it is placed in a family of its own, the Hypocoliidae. This slender and long tailed bird i ...
: hypocolius
:::* Mohoidae
Mohoidae, also known as the Hawaiian honeyeaters, is a family of Hawaiian species of recently extinct, nectarivorous songbirds in the genera '' Moho'' (ōō) and '' Chaetoptila'' (kioea). These now extinct birds form their own family, represent ...
: oos
::*Superfamily Muscicapoidea
:::* Elachuridae: spotted elachura
:::* Cinclidae: dippers
:::* 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 Northe ...
: Old World flycatchers and chats
:::* Turdidae
The thrushes are a passerine bird family, Turdidae, with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before biologists reclassified the former subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, as Old World fl ...
: thrushes and allies
:::* Buphagidae
The oxpeckers are two species of bird which make up the genus ''Buphagus'', and family (biology), family Buphagidae. The oxpeckers were formerly usually treated as a subfamily, Buphaginae, within the starling family, Sturnidae, but molecular p ...
: oxpeckers
:::* Sturnidae: starlings and rhabdornis
:::* Mimidae: mockingbirds and thrashers
:::—
:::* Regulidae: goldcrests and kinglets
::*Superfamily Certhioidea
Certhioidea is a superfamily belonging to the infraorder Passerida containing wrens and their allies. It was proposed in 2004 by Cracraft and colleagues to house a clade of four families that were removed from the superfamily Sylvioidea.
Cla ...
:::* Tichodromidae
The wallcreeper (''Tichodroma muraria'') is a small passerine bird found throughout the high mountains of the Palearctic from southern Europe to central China. It is the only extant member of both the genus ''Tichodroma'' and the family Tichodr ...
: wallcreeper
:::* Sittidae
The nuthatches () constitute a genus, ''Sitta'', of small passerine birds belonging to the family Sittidae. Characterised by large heads, short tails, and powerful bills and feet, nuthatches advertise their territory using loud, simple songs. Mo ...
: nuthatches
:::* Certhiidae
The treecreepers are a family, Certhiidae, of small passerine birds, widespread in wooded regions of the Northern Hemisphere and sub-Saharan Africa. The family contains eleven species in two genera, ''Certhia'' and '' Salpornis''. Their plumage i ...
: treecreepers
:::* Polioptilidae: gnatcatchers
:::* Troglodytidae: wrens
* Parvorder Passerida – previously known as the superfamily Passeroidea
:::* Promeropidae: sugarbirds
:::* Modulatricidae: dapple-throat and allies
:::* Nectariniidae
Sunbirds and spiderhunters make up the family Nectariniidae of passerine birds. They are small, slender passerines from the Old World, usually with downward-curved bills. Many are brightly coloured, often with iridescent feathers, particularly ...
: sunbirds
:::* Dicaeidae
The flowerpeckers are a family, Dicaeidae, of passerine birds. The family comprises two genera, '' Prionochilus'' and '' Dicaeum'', with 50 species in total. The family has sometimes been included in an enlarged sunbird family Nectariniidae. The ...
: flowerpeckers
:::* Chloropseidae: leafbirds
:::* Irenidae: fairy-bluebirds
:::* Peucedramidae: olive warbler
:::* Urocynchramidae: Przewalski's finch
:::* Ploceidae
Ploceidae is a family of small passerine birds, many of which are called weavers, weaverbirds, weaver finches and bishops. These names come from the nests of intricately woven vegetation created by birds in this family. In most recent classifica ...
: weavers
:::* Viduidae
__NOTOC__
The indigobirds and whydahs, together with the cuckoo-finch, make up the family Viduidae; they are small passerine birds native to Africa.
These are finch-like species which usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage ...
: indigobirds and whydahs
:::* Estrildidae
Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. Despite the word "fi ...
: waxbills, munias and allies
:::* Prunellidae
The accentors are a genus of birds in the family Prunellidae, which is endemic to the Old World. This small group of closely related passerines are all in the genus ''Prunella''. All but the dunnock and the Japanese accentor are inhabitants of th ...
: accentors
:::* Passeridae
Old World sparrows are a group of small passerine birds forming the family Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, a name also used for a particular genus of the family, '' Passer''. They are distinct from both the New World sparrows, ...
: Old World sparrows and snowfinches
:::* Motacillidae
The wagtails, longclaws, and pipits are a family, Motacillidae, of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Around 70 species occur in five genera. The longclaws are entirely restricted to the Afrotropics, and the wagtails are predomin ...
: wagtails and pipits
:::* Fringillidae
The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...
: finches and euphonias
::*Superfamily Emberizoidea – previously known as the New World nine-primaried oscines[
:::* Rhodinocichlidae: rosy thrush-tanager
:::* ]Calcariidae
Calcariidae is a small family of passerine birds. It includes longspurs and snow buntings. There are six species in three genera worldwide, found mainly in North America and Eurasia. They are migratory and can live in a variety of habitats includ ...
: longspurs and snow buntings
:::* Emberizidae
The buntings are a group of Old World passerine birds forming the genus ''Emberiza'', the only genus in the family Emberizidae. The family contains 45 species. They are seed-eating birds with stubby, conical bills.
Taxonomy
The family Emberizid ...
: buntings
:::* Cardinalidae
Cardinalidae (often referred to as the "cardinal-grosbeaks" or simply the "cardinals") is a family of New World-endemic passerine birds that consists of cardinals, grosbeaks, and buntings. It also includes several birds such as the tanager-lik ...
: cardinals
:::* Mitrospingidae: mitrospingid tanagers
:::* Thraupidae
The tanagers (singular ) comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has a Neotropical distribution and is the second-largest family of birds. It represents about 4% of all avian species and 12% of the Neotropica ...
: tanagers and allies
:::* Passerellidae
New World sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming the family Passerellidae. They are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns.
Although they share t ...
: New World sparrows, bush tanagers
:::* Parulidae
The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds that make up the family Parulidae and are restricted to the New World. They are not closely related to Old World warblers or Australian warblers. Mos ...
: New World warblers
:::* Icteriidae
The yellow-breasted chat (''Icteria virens'') is a large songbird found in North America, and is the only member of the family Icteriidae. It was once a member of the New World warbler family, but in 2017, the American Ornithological Society move ...
: yellow-breasted chat
:::* Icteridae
Icterids () or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae (), of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. Th ...
: grackles, New World blackbirds, and New World orioles
:::* Calyptophilidae: chat-tanagers
:::* Zeledoniidae: wrenthrush
:::* Teretistridae: Cuban warblers
:::* Nesospingidae
The Puerto Rican tanager (''Nesospingus speculiferus'') is a small passerine bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. It is the only member of the genus ''Nesospingus'' and has historically been placed in the tanager family, but recent st ...
: Puerto Rican tanager
:::* Spindalidae
''Spindalis'' is a genus consisting of four non-migratory species of bird. It is the only genus in the family Spindalidae. The species are mostly endemic to the West Indies; exceptions include populations of western spindalises on Cozumel Island ...
: spindalises
:::* Phaenicophilidae: Hispaniolan tanagers
Phylogeny
Relationships between living Passeriformes families based on the phylogenetic analysis of Oliveros et al (2019).[ Some terminals have been renamed to reflect families recognised by the IOC but not in that study.][ The IOC families ]Alcippeidae
''Alcippe'' is a genus of passerine birds in the monotypic family Alcippeidae. The genus once included many other fulvettas and was previously placed in families Pellorneidae or Timaliidae.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Alcippe'' previously included m ...
and Teretistridae were not sampled in this study.
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
Supporting information
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Extant Eocene first appearances
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus