''Leucocarbo'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of birds in the family

Phalacrocoracidae Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven gen ...

with the members commonly known as blue-eyed shags. This is a group of closely related

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...

taxa. Many have a blue, purple or red ring around the eye (not a blue iris); other shared features are white underparts (at least in some individuals) and pink feet. They are found around the colder parts of the Southern Hemisphere, especially near southern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the souther ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

, and

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 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

. Many are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

to remote islands. Determining which types are species and which are subspecies of what larger species is problematic; various recent authorities have recognized from 8 to 14 species and have placed them in a variety of genera. The common names are even more confusing, "like myriad footprints criss-crossing in the snow and about as easy to disentangle." Only one common name is given for most species here.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Leucocarbo'' was introduced in 1856 by the French naturalist

Charles Lucien Bonaparte Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte, 2nd Prince of Canino and Musignano (24 May 1803 – 29 July 1857), was a French naturalist and ornithologist. Lucien and his wife had twelve children, including Cardinal Lucien Bonaparte. Life and career ...

. He did not specify a

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( ...

but this was designated as the

Guanay cormorant The Guanay cormorant or Guanay shag (''Leucocarbo bougainvilliorum'') is a member of the cormorant family found on the Pacific coast of Peru and northern Chile. (The Argentinian population on the Patagonian Atlantic coast appears to be ex ...

William Ogilvie-Grant William Robert Ogilvie-Grant (25 March 1863 – 26 July 1924) was a Scottish ornithologist. Early life and education Grant born on 25 March 1863 as second son of Capt. Hon. George Henry Essex Ogilvie-Grant, of Easter Elchies, Craigellachie, Sco ...

in 1898. The name ''Leucocarbo'' 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 p ...

''leukos'' meaning "white" with the genus name ''Carbo'' introduced by

Bernard Germain de Lacépède Bernard-Germain-Étienne de La Ville-sur-Illon, comte de Lacépède or La Cépède (; 26 December 17566 October 1825) was a French naturalist and an active freemason. He is known for his contribution to the Comte de Buffon's great work, the ...

in 1799. 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 ''Leucocarbo'' is

sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to ...

to the American cormorants in the genus ''

Nannopterum ''Nannopterum'' is a genus of cormorant comprising three species. They are found throughout the Americas, hence the common name American cormorants. These species were formerly classified in the genus ''Phalacrocorax''. A molecular phylogenetic ...

''; the genera split between 6.7 - 8.0 million years ago. The genus contains 16 species: * Rock shag, ''Leucocarbo magellanicus'' *

, ''Leucocarbo bougainvillii'' * Bounty shag, ''Leucocarbo ranfurlyi'' * New Zealand king shag or rough-faced shag, ''Leucocarbo carunculatus '' * Chatham shag, ''Leucocarbo onslowi'' * Otago shag, ''Leucocarbo chalconotus'' * Foveaux shag, ''Leucocarbo stewarti'' * Auckland shag, ''Leucocarbo colensoi'' *

Campbell shag The Campbell shag (''Leucocarbo campbelli''), also known as the Campbell Island shag, is a species of bird in the family Phalacrocoracidae. It is endemic to Campbell Island. Its natural habitats are open seas and rocky shores. It is a medium- ...

, ''Leucocarbo campbelli'' *

Imperial shag The imperial shag or imperial cormorant (''Leucocarbo atriceps'') is a black and white cormorant native to southern South America, primarily in rocky coastal regions, but locally also at large inland lakes. Some taxonomic authorities, including ...

or blue-eyed shag, ''Leucocarbo atriceps'' * South Georgia shag, ''Leucocarbo georgianus'' *

Crozet shag The Crozet shag (''Leucocarbo melanogenis''), also known as the South Georgia cormorant, is a marine cormorant native to the Crozet, Prince Edward and Marion islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. Characteristics The Crozet shag is a member o ...

, ''Leucocarbo melanogenis'' *

Antarctic shag The Antarctic shag (''Leucocarbo bransfieldensis''), sometimes referred to as the imperial cormorant, king cormorant, imperial shag, blue-eyed shag or Antarctic cormorant, is the only species of the cormorant family found in the Antarctic. It is s ...

, ''Leucocarbo bransfieldensis'' *

Kerguelen shag The Kerguelen shag (''Leucocarbo verrucosus'') is a species of cormorant endemic to the Kerguelen Islands in the southern Indian Ocean, one of the most isolated places on Earth. Many authorities consider it a subspecies of the imperial shag. Ra ...

, ''Leucocarbo verrucosus'' *

Heard Island shag The Heard Island shag (''Leucocarbo nivalis''), or Heard Island cormorant, is a marine cormorant native to the Australian territory comprising the Heard and McDonald Islands in the Southern Ocean, about 4100 km south-west of Perth, Wester ...

, ''Leucocarbo nivalis'' *

Macquarie shag The Macquarie shag (''Leucocarbo purpurascens''), Macquarie Island shag or Macquarie Island cormorant, is a marine cormorant native to Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean, about halfway between Australia and Antarctica. Taxonomy The Macquari ...

, ''Leucocarbo purpurascens''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blue-Eyed Shag Leucocarbo Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte