Overview
Amphispiza is a genus of in the bunting and American sparrow family. It contains two species:
- Black-throated Sparrow, Amphispiza bilineata
- Sage Sparrow, Amphispiza belli
The Five-striped Sparrow was formerly placed in this genus.
Both inhabit dry areas of the western United States and northern Mexico, but in different habitats. They frequently run on the ground with their tails cocked and sing from low bushes. Adults are whitish on the belly and gray above and on the head, with black and white head markings. Juveniles are rather similar to each other, grayish brown above and whitish below, with short streaks on the breast (Howell and Webb 1995).
Amphispiza is from Ancient Greek amphi- (aµf?-), "on both sides" or "around", and spiza (sp??a), "finch", originally applied to the Sage Sparrow; it was then considered a finch and resembles some other finch-like birds "around" it, that is, in its range (Holloway 2003).
Photos
Taxonomy
- Domain: Eukaryota
Whittaker & Margulis,1978 - eukaryotes
- Kingdom: Animalia
Linnaeus, 1758 - animals
- Subkingdom: Bilateria
(Hatschek, 1888) Cavalier-Smith, 1983 - bilaterians
- Branch: Deuterostomia
Grobben, 1908 - Deuterostomes
- Infrakingdom: Chordonia
(Haeckel, 1874) Cavalier-Smith, 1998
- Phylum: Chordata
Bateson, 1885 - Chordates
- Subphylum: Vertebrata
Cuvier, 1812 - Vertebrates
- Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Auct. - Jawed Vertebrates
- Superclass: Tetrapoda
Goodrich, 1930 - Tetrapods
- Class: Aves
Linnaeus, 1758 - Birds
- Subclass: Neornithes
Gadow, 1893
- Infraclass: Neoaves
- Superorder: Passerimorphae
- Order: Passeriformes
C. Linnaeus, 1758 - Perching Birds
- Suborder: Passeri
- Parvorder: Passerida
- Superfamily: Passeroidea
- Family: Fringillidae
- Buntings, Finches
- Subfamily: Emberizinae
- Tribe: Emberizini
- Genus: Amphispiza - Desert Sparrows
- Tribe: Emberizini
- Subfamily: Emberizinae
- Family: Fringillidae
- Buntings, Finches
- Superfamily: Passeroidea
- Parvorder: Passerida
- Suborder: Passeri
- Order: Passeriformes
C. Linnaeus, 1758 - Perching Birds
- Superorder: Passerimorphae
- Infraclass: Neoaves
- Subclass: Neornithes
Gadow, 1893
- Class: Aves
Linnaeus, 1758 - Birds
- Superclass: Tetrapoda
Goodrich, 1930 - Tetrapods
- Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Auct. - Jawed Vertebrates
- Subphylum: Vertebrata
Cuvier, 1812 - Vertebrates
- Phylum: Chordata
Bateson, 1885 - Chordates
- Infrakingdom: Chordonia
(Haeckel, 1874) Cavalier-Smith, 1998
- Branch: Deuterostomia
Grobben, 1908 - Deuterostomes
- Subkingdom: Bilateria
(Hatschek, 1888) Cavalier-Smith, 1983 - bilaterians
- Kingdom: Animalia
Linnaeus, 1758 - animals
The Genus Amphispiza is further organized into finer groupings including:
- Species: ZipcodeZoo has pages for 22 species and subspecies in the Genus Amphispiza: A. belli (Santa Catarina Sparrow) · A. belli belli (Santa Catarina Sparrow) · A. belli canescens · A. belli cinerea · A. belli clementeae (San Clemente Sage Sparrow) · A. belli nevadensis · A. belli ssp · A. bellii · A. bilineata (Desert Black-Throated Sparrow) · A. bilineata bangsi · A. bilineata belvederei · A. bilineata bilineata (Desert Black-Throated Sparrow) · A. bilineata cana · A. bilineata carmenae · A. bilineata deserticola · A. bilineata grisea · A. bilineata opuntia · A. bilineata pacifica · A. bilineata tortugae · A. binileata · A. nevadensis · A. quinquestriata (Five-Striped Sparrow)
References
- Holloway, Joel Ellis (2003). Dictionary of Birds of the United States: Scientific and Common Names. Timber Press. pp. 25. ISBN 0-88192-600-0.
- Howell, Steve N. G.; Webb, Sophie (1995). A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America. Oxford University Press. pp. 714–715 . ISBN 0-19-854012-4.
- Peterson, Alan P. (Editor). 1999. Zoological Nomenclature Resource (Zoonomen). Accessed 2007-07-29.
Sources
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