I received via email from W A, a lovely photo of a pigeon with a crest. The email did not name it. Checked my bird books and decided it is a Spinifex Pigeon (Geophaps plumifera)
I was intrigued to note how similar in appearance it is to the crested pigeon (Ocyphaps lophotes), and mystified to see that they are in different genera.
Is there a taxonomist out there who can explain for me (in lay language) why this is so?
T I A
Syd Curtis (in Brisbane) ===============================
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Syd,
I am sure there are some taxonomists out there who can explain it better – please feel free to correct me!
There is heaps of – partially controversial – literature out there. Here my very simplified summary (I am avoiding terms like monophyletic and polyphyletic).
Geophaps, Ocyphaps, Phaps and Petrophassa are all relatively closely related to each other. Ocyphaps is somewhere between Geophaps and Phaps (i.e. Crested Pigeon is kind of a connecting link between Geophaps and the Bronzewings). Petrophassa (Rock Pigeons) seems to be closer to Geophaps than to Ocyphaps and Phaps.
If you include Ocyphaps in Geophaps – as some authorities have done – then you may need to consider to combine all three – Geophaps, Ocyphaps, Phaps – in one genus. But then, what happens to Petrophassa? Petrophassa may then also need to be included. In this case the next set of relatives Wonga Pigeon (Leucosarcia melanoleuca) and Geopelia (Peaceful Dove & Co.) may need to be included, too. You see, it is getting very complicated.
Therefore it may be better to keep Crested Pigeon in its own genus.
Cheers,
Nikolas