Bucerotiformes is an order of birds that contains the hornbills, ground hornbills, hoopoes and wood hoopoes. These birds were previously classified as members of Coraciiformes. The

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

is distributed in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Melanesia Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from New Guinea in the west to the Fiji Islands in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Vanu ...

Systematics

Recent genetic data show that ground hornbills and '' Bycanistes'' form a clade outside the rest of the hornbill lineage. They are thought to represent an early African lineage, while the rest of Bucerotiformes evolved in Asia. The hoopoe subspecies Saint Helena hoopoe and the Madagascar subspecies are sometimes elevated to a full species. The two wood hoopoe genera, '' Phoeniculus'' and '' Rhinopomastus'', appear to have diverged about 10 million years ago, so some systematists treat them as separate subfamilies or even separate families. Extinct Messelirrisoridae and Laurillardiidae families were both considered to be stem groups of a previously categorized Upupiformes order prior to it being subcategorized into Bucerotiformes.Mayr, Gerald (2009). "Paleogene Fossil Birds". In Springer Science & Business Media, 21 April 2009, p. 194.

Taxonomy

Order Bucerotiformes *Family '' Messelirrisoridae'' **Genus '' Messelirrisor'' *** ''Messelirrisor halcyrostris'' *** ''Messelirrisor grandis'' *** ''Messelirrisor parvus'' *Family '' Laurillardiidae'' **Genus '' Laurillardia'' *** ''Laurillardia longirostris'' *** ''Laurillardia munieri'' *** ''Laurillardia smoleni'' *Suborder Upupi **Family Phoeniculidae ***Genus '' Phoeniculus'' **** Green wood hoopoe, ''Phoeniculus purpureus'' **** Violet wood hoopoe, ''Phoeniculus damarensis'' **** Black-billed wood hoopoe, ''Phoeniculus somaliensis'' **** White-headed wood hoopoe, ''Phoeniculus bollei'' **** Forest wood hoopoe, ''Phoeniculus castaneiceps'' ***Genus '' Rhinopomastus'' **** Black scimitarbill, ''Rhinopomastus aterrimus'' **** Common scimitarbill, ''Rhinopomastus cyanomelas'' **** Abyssinian scimitarbill, ''Rhinopomastus minor'' **Family Upupidae ***Genus '' Upupa'' **** Eurasian hoopoe, ''Upupa epops'' **** Madagascar hoopoe, ''Upupa marginata'' *Suborder Buceroti **Family Bucorvidae ***Genus '' Bucorvus'' **** Abyssinian ground hornbill, ''Bucorvus abyssinicus'' **** Southern ground hornbill, ''Bucorvus leadbeateri'' **Family Bucerotidae ***Genus '' Bycanistes'' **** Trumpeter hornbill, ''Bycanistes bucinator'' **** Piping hornbill, ''Bycanistes fistulator'' **** Silvery-cheeked hornbill, ''Bycanistes brevis'' **** Black-and-white-casqued hornbill, ''Bycanistes subcylindricus'' **** Brown-cheeked hornbill, ''Bycanistes cylindricus'' **** White-thighed hornbill, ''Bycanistes albotibialis'' ***Genus '' Horizocerus'' **** White-crested hornbill, ''Horizocerus albocristatus'' **** Black dwarf hornbill, ''Horizocerus hartlaubi'' ***Genus '' Tockus'' **** Red-billed dwarf hornbill, ''Tockus camurus'' **** Monteiro's hornbill, ''Tockus monteiri'' **** Red-billed hornbill group ***** Northern red-billed hornbill, ''Tockus erythrorhynchus'' ***** Damara red-billed hornbill, ''Tockus damarensis'' ***** Southern red-billed hornbill, ''Tockus rufirostris'' ***** Tanzanian red-billed hornbill, ''Tockus ruahae'' ***** Western red-billed hornbill, ''Tockus kempi'' **** Eastern yellow-billed hornbill, ''Tockus flavirostris'' **** Southern yellow-billed hornbill, ''Tockus leucomelas'' **** Jackson's hornbill, ''Tockus jacksoni'' **** Von der Decken's hornbill, ''Tockus deckeni'' **** Crowned hornbill, ''Tockus alboterminatus'' **** Bradfield's hornbill, ''Tockus bradfieldi'' **** African pied hornbill, ''Tockus fasciatus'' **** Hemprich's hornbill, ''Tockus hemprichii'' **** Pale-billed hornbill, ''Tockus pallidirostris'' **** African grey hornbill, ''Tockus nasutus'' ***Genus '' Ocyceros'' **** Malabar grey hornbill, ''Ocyceros griseus'' **** Sri Lanka grey hornbill, ''Ocyceros gingalensis'' **** Indian grey hornbill, ''Ocyceros biostris'' ***Genus '' Anthracoceros'' **** Malabar pied hornbill, ''Anthracoceros coronatus'' **** Oriental pied hornbill, ''Anthracoceros albirostris'' **** Black hornbill, ''Anthracoceros malayanus'' **** Palawan hornbill, ''Antracoceros marchei'' **** Sulu hornbill, ''Anthracoceros montani'' ***Genus '' Buceros'' **** Rhinoceros hornbill, ''Buceros rhinoceros'' **** Great hornbill, ''Buceros bicornis'' **** Rufous hornbill, ''Buceros hydrocorax'' ***Genus '' Rhinoplax'' (sometimes included in ''Buceros'') **** Helmeted hornbill, ''Rhinoplax vigil'' ***Genus '' Anorrhinus'' **** Austen's brown hornbill, ''Anorrhinus austeni'' **** Tickell's brown hornbill, ''Anorrhinus tickelli'' **** Bushy-crested hornbill, ''Anorrhinus galeritus'' ***Genus '' Penelopides'' **** Luzon hornbill, ''Penelopides manillae'' **** Mindoro hornbill, ''Penelopides mindorensis'' **** Visayan hornbill, ''Penelopides panini'' **** Samar hornbill, ''Penelopides samarensis'' **** Mindanao hornbill, ''Penelopides affinis'' ***Genus '' Berenicornis'' (sometimes included in ''Aceros'') **** White-crowned hornbill, ''Berenicornis comatus'' ***Genus '' Aceros'' **** Rufous-necked hornbill, ''Aceros nipalensis'' ***Genus Rhabdotorrhinus **** Wrinkled hornbill, ''Rhabdotorrhinus corrugatus'' **** Writhed hornbill, ''Rhabdotorrhinus'' ''leucocephalus'' **** Rufous-headed hornbill, ''Rhabdotorrhinus'' ''waldeni'' **** Sulawesi hornbill, ''Rhabdotorrhinus exarhatus'' ***Genus '' Rhyticeros'' (sometimes included in ''Aceros'') **** Wreathed hornbill, ''Rhyticeros undulatus'' **** Narcondam hornbill, ''Rhyticeros narcondami'' **** Sumba hornbill, ''Rhyticeros everetti'' **** Plain-pouched hornbill, ''Rhyticeros subruficollis'' **** Papuan hornbill, ''Rhyticeros plicatus'' **** Knobbed hornbill, ''Rhyticeros'' ''cassidix'' *** Genus '' Ceratogymna'' **** Black-casqued hornbill, ''Ceratogymna atrata'' **** Yellow-casqued hornbill, ''Ceratogymna elate''

Systematics

Taxonomy

References

Further reading