''Phyllastrephus'' is a

songbird 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 500 ...

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 ...

in the bulbul

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

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 Asi ...

. Most of the species in the genus are typical greenbuls, though two are brownbuls, and one is a

leaflove Leaflove may refer to: * Red-tailed leaflove, also known as African leaflove, common leaflove, leaflove and plain leaflove, a species of bird found in western and central Africa ** Uela leaflove and Gabon leaflove, subspecies * Simple leaflove, a ...

Taxonomy and systematics

The genus ''Phyllastrephus'' was introduced by the English naturalist

William John Swainson William John Swainson FLS, FRS (8 October 1789 – 6 December 1855), was an English ornithologist, malacologist, conchologist, entomologist and artist. Life Swainson was born in Dover Place, St Mary Newington, London, the eldest son of ...

in 1832 with ''Le Jaboteur'' ( Levaillant), now the

terrestrial brownbul The terrestrial brownbul (''Phyllastrephus terrestris'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern and south-eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or ...

, as 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 ...

. The genus name combines 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 ...

''phullon '' meaning "leaf" with ''strephō'' meaning "to toss" or "to turn".

Species

The genus contains the following 20 species: *

Lowland tiny greenbul The lowland tiny greenbul (''Phyllastrephus debilis''), is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical ...

(''Phyllastrephus debilis'') *

Montane tiny greenbul The montane tiny greenbul (''Phyllastrephus albigula'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is endemic to the Usambara and Nguru Mountains in Tanzania. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane for ...

(''Phyllastrephus albigula'') * White-throated greenbul (''Phyllastrephus albigularis'') * Xavier's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus xavieri'') *

Icterine greenbul The icterine greenbul (''Phyllastrephus icterinus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in western and central Africa. Taxonomy and systematics The icterine greenbul was originally described in the genus ''T ...

(''Phyllastrephus icterinus'') *

Terrestrial brownbul The terrestrial brownbul (''Phyllastrephus terrestris'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern and south-eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or ...

(''Phyllastrephus terrestris'') *

Cameroon olive greenbul The Cameroon olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus poensis''), is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in the Cameroon line (including Bioko). Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest ...

(''Phyllastrephus poensis'') * Northern brownbul (''Phyllastrephus strepitans'') *

Grey-olive greenbul The grey-olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus cerviniventris''), or grey-olive bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern and south-central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical d ...

(''Phyllastrephus cerviniventris'') *

Fischer's greenbul Fischer's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus fischeri'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern Africa from southern Somalia to north-eastern Mozambique. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry fo ...

(''Phyllastrephus fischeri'') *

Cabanis's greenbul Cabanis's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus cabanisi''), also known as Cabanis's bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in east-central and south-central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical ...

(''Phyllastrephus cabanisi'') *

Placid greenbul The placid greenbul (''Phyllastrephus placidus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern Africa from eastern Kenya through Tanzania to north-eastern Zambia, Malawi and north-western Mozambique. In the ...

(''Phyllastrephus placidus'') *

Red-tailed leaflove The red-tailed leaflove (''Phyllastrephus scandens'') is a species of leaflove in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in western and central Africa. Taxonomy and systematics Although originally described in the genus ''Phyllastrephus'', ...

(''Phyllastrephus scandens'') * Sassi's olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus lorenzi'') *

Yellow-streaked greenbul The yellow-streaked greenbul or yellow-streaked bulbul (''Phyllastrephus flavostriatus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern and south-eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropic ...

(''Phyllastrephus flavostriatus'') *

Sharpe's greenbul Sharpe's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus alfredi'') or the Malawi greenbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in Africa in south-western Tanzania, north-eastern Zambia and northern Malawi. Taxonomy and systemat ...

(''Phyllastrephus alfredi'') * Grey-headed greenbul (''Phyllastrephus poliocephalus'') *

Toro olive greenbul The Toro olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus hypochloris'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in southern South Sudan and from eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda to western Kenya and northe ...

(''Phyllastrephus hypochloris'') * Baumann's olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus baumanni'') *

Pale-olive greenbul The pale-olive greenbul (''Phyllastrephus fulviventris''), or pale-olive bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. Distribution and habitat It is found in western Angola, Gabon, southern Congo and extreme western Demo ...

(''Phyllastrephus fulviventris'')

Former species

Several species from Madagascar that were formerly placed in the genus ''Phyllastrephus'' have now been moved into '' Bernieria'' and ''

Xanthomixis ''Xanthomixis'' is a genus of birds in the Malagasy warbler family, 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 specie ...

''. Commonly called the Bernieria and the tetrakas, these species are not bulbuls but

Malagasy warbler 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. ...

s similar to greenbuls due to

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 ...

. Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species (or subspecies) as species within the genus ''Phyllastrephus'': *

Honeyguide greenbul The honeyguide greenbul (''Baeopogon indicator'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is widespread throughout the African tropical rainforest. Taxonomy and systematics The honeyguide greenbul was originally describ ...

(as ''Phyllastrephus indicator'') *

Simple greenbul The simple greenbul (''Chlorocichla simplex'') or simple leaflove, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is widespread throughout the African tropical rainforest. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dr ...

(as ''Pyrrhurus simplex'') *

Swamp palm bulbul The swamp palm bulbul (''Thescelocichla leucopleura''), is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Thescelocichla''. Taxonomy and systematics The swamp palm bulbul was originally described in ...

(as ''Phyllastrephus leucopleurus'')

References

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Pycnonotidae-stub