Psephotellus
| Psephotellus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Mulga parrot | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Psittaciformes |
| Family: | Psittaculidae |
| Tribe: | Platycercini |
| Genus: | Psephotellus Mathews, 1913 |
| Species | |
|
Four; see text | |
Psephotellus is a genus of medium sized Australian parrots. Four species found across the country are recognised, one is presumed to have become extinct.
Description
All species show considerable sexual dimorphism. These species have traditionally been placed in the genus Psephotus along with the red-rumped parrot, but a molecular study analysing nuclear and mitochondrial DNA found that the red-rumped parrot was an early offshoot in a clade of several genera of broad-tailed parrot, with the other species nested deeply within.[1][2]
Taxonomy
The genus was first proposed by Gregory Mathews in 1913, nominating the paradise parrot Platycercus pulcherrimus Gould as the type and forming a new combination as Psephotellus pulcherrimus.[3]
Diversity and distribution
| Image | Scientific name | Common Name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Psephotellus varius | mulga parrot | Western New South Wales from Collarenabri, West Wyalong and Griffith westwards through the northwestern tip of Victoria and across South Australia to central Western Australia. |
 |
Psephotellus dissimilis | hooded parrot | northeast Northern Territory |
 |
Psephotellus chrysopterygius | golden-shouldered parrot | Queensland and New South Wales |
 |
Psephotellus pulcherrimus | paradise parrot | formerly recorded in eastern Qld and northeastern NSW, no confirmed record since 1927.[4] |
References
- ^ Leo Joseph; Alicia Toon; Erin E. Schirtzinger; Timothy F. Wright (2011). "Molecular systematics of two enigmatic genera Psittacella and Pezoporus illuminate the ecological radiation of Australo-Papuan parrots (Aves: Psittaciformes)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 59 (3): 675–684. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2011.03.017. PMID 21453777.
- ^ Schweizer, Manuel; Güntert, Marcel; Hertwig, Stefan T. (2012). "Out of the Bassian province: historical biogeography of the Australasian platycercine parrots". Zoologica Scripta. 42 (1): 13–27. doi:10.1111/j.1463-6409.2012.00561.x.
- ^ Mathews, G. (1913). "New generic names, with some notes on others". Austral Avian Record; A Scientific Journal Devoted Primarily to the Study of the Australian Avifauna. 2: 57.
- ^ Blakers, M.; Davies, S.J.J.F.; Reilly, P.N. (1984). Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union (ed.). The Atlas of Australian Birds (1st ed.). Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 978-0-522-84285-2.