Iberian Chiffchaff
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The Iberian chiffchaff (''Phylloscopus ibericus'') is a
species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped') which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their ...
belonging to the
family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Phylloscopidae Leaf warblers are small insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus ''Phylloscopus''. Leaf warblers were formerly included in the Old World warbler family but are now considered to belong to the family Phylloscopidae, introduced in 2006 ...
, the leaf warblers. This species is found as a breeding bird in the Southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa. It winters in Western Africa south of the
Sahara Desert The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
.


Taxonomy and etymology

The Iberian chiffchaff was first distinguished as separate from the
common chiffchaff The common chiffchaff (''Phylloscopus collybita''), or simply the chiffchaff, is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic. It is a bird migration, migratory ...
(‘’P. collybita’’) in 1871 by the German
ornithologist Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...
Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer (11 November 1809 – 31 May 1889) was a German ornithologist. He made early studies of the birds of Pomerania, making collections, and was a staunch anti-Darwinian. Life and work Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer was b ...
who named it as the
subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
‘’P. c. brehmi’’. However, when the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
of ‘’P. c. brehmi’’ was re-examined it was found to actually be an example of common chiffchaff which rendered Homeyer’s name invalid. It was then decided to use the name ‘’P. c. ibericus’’ proposed by the English ornithologist Claud B. Ticehurst in 1937 with its type locality given as Paul d'Argila, near
Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of . The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...
in Portugal. As of 2016, it is recognised as a separate
species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
under the name ''Phylloscopus ibericus'' The genus name ''Phylloscopus'' is from
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...
''phullon'', "leaf", and ''skopos'', "seeker" (from ''skopeo'', "to watch"). The specific ''ibericus'' is
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
for "
Iberian Iberian refers to Iberia. Most commonly Iberian refers to: *Someone or something originating in the Iberian Peninsula, namely from Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. The term ''Iberian'' is also used to refer to anything pertaining to the fo ...
". The name "chiffchaff" is onomatopoeic, referring to the repetitive ''chiff-chaff'' song of the
common chiffchaff The common chiffchaff (''Phylloscopus collybita''), or simply the chiffchaff, is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic. It is a bird migration, migratory ...
(''Phylloscopus collybita''). There are similar names in some other European languages, such as the
Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...
''Tjiftjaf'', the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
''Zilpzalp'' and
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...
''siff-saff''. Due to current research on these species, it has been discovered that Iberian Chiffchaff is the most divergent among the members of the chiffchaff species complex. The Iberian Chiffchaff is slightly larger and paler, with more olive-coloured plumage.


Identification

The Iberian chiffchaff is told apart from the common chiffchaff mainly on its song but it also has plumage differences such as the upperparts being a cleaner green colour with no brown hue. The breast is yellow and the belly is white, closer in appearance to a
willow warbler The willow warbler (''Phylloscopus trochilus'') is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia. It is strongl ...
(‘’P. trochilus’’) than the common chiffchaff. This resemblance to willow warbler is enhanced by the distinct dark eyestripe. The voice is similar to common chiff chaff but is not a disyllabic but introduces other elements, there is a chiff-chaff like call, but this is faster and more monotonous than the common chiffchaff song, some repeated rattles and then some long drawn out whistles. This has been written down as “chiff-chiff-chiff-chiff-dr-dr-dr-dr-swit-swit-swit”.


Distribution and habitat

The Iberian chiffchaff is a summer visitor to its breeding range in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. In the Iberian Peninsula it breeds in the west and north, the northern Spanish population breeds from Galicia to
Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...
in the
Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...
, with a small number breeding in the
Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon language, Gascon Occitan language, Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; ) is a Departments of France, department located in the Regions of France, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the southwest corner of metropolitan ...
in France with separate scattered populations in the mountains of southern Spain. In Portugal it is mainly found in
Trás-os-Montes Trás-os-Montes () is a geographical, historical and cultural region of Portugal. Portuguese language, Portuguese for "behind the mountains", Trás-os-Montes is located northeast of the country in an highland, upland area, landlocked by the Douro ...
and Alto Douro in the north with another separate population in southern Portugal from Estremadura south to the
Algarve The Algarve (, , ) is the southernmost NUTS statistical regions of Portugal, NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities (concelho, ''concelhos'' or ''município ...
. It also breeds in northern Morrocco. It is found in humid areas, being assocuiated with riparian habitats in the south, although in the north they are found in a deciduous woodland with well-developed undergrowth and are less dependant on riparian habitats.


References


Further reading

*Svensson, Lars (2001). "The correct name of the Iberian Chiffchaff ''Phylloscopus ibericus'' Ticehurst 1937, its identification and new evidence of its winter grounds". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 121: 281–296.


External links


Ageing and sexing (PDF; 1.8 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze
Iberian chiffchaff Birds of Southern Europe Birds of North Africa Birds of West Africa Fauna of the Iberian Peninsula Iberian chiffchaff Iberian chiffchaff {{Phylloscopidae-stub