Dave,
Birds (Birdlife) Australia has a committee that periodically reviews the taxonomy of Australian Birds and as I understand it is currently utilizing a comprehensive list which includes all subspecies based on the birdlife international checklist. For the most part it is similar to the IOC checklist but is not yet publicly available.
So while we wait it made sense to update the ‘totals page’ to the new IOC list given that Christidis & Boles 2008 is now so out of date and not being updated. The Australian List on the totals page is simply an extraction of Australian birds from http://www.worldbirdnames.org/names.html and is not the “official list”.
At the moment there is no official list, but no doubt we will hear from Birds Australia in due course. Certainly the BARC committee is in favour of the IOC checklist given its up-to-date and dynamic nature and the fact that it already has considerable input from Australian Ornithologists including Dick Schodde, Leo Joseph and Phil Gregory for example.
Regards,
Tony
>>
How does one define an “official” list? I guess if most birders accept it (and Tony Palliser’s site is leading the way) it will happen. Since there is unlikely to be an update to C&B 2008 it makes sense that Aus adopts an internationally accepted list and IOC seems as good as any. I assume that BirdLife Australia will have to take a position at some stage!
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