Cnemarchus | |
---|---|
Red-rumped bush tyrant (Cnemarchus erythropygius) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Tyrannidae |
Genus: |
Cnemarchus Ridgway, 1905 |
Type species | |
Taenioptera erythropygia red-rumped bush tyrant
Sclater, 1853
|
Cnemarchus is a genus of South American birds in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae.
The two member of this genus are elongated, upright-perching flycatchers that share similar tail patterns. They are found at high-altitudes.
The genus Cnemarchus was introduced in 1905 by the American ornithologist Robert Ridgway with the red-rumped bush tyrant as the type species. The name combines the Ancient Greek knēmos meaning "mountain-slope" with arkhos meaning "ruler" or "chief". [1]
This genus formerly contained only the red-rumped bush tyrant. Molecular phylogenetic studies published in 2020 found that the red-rumped bush tyrant was a sister to the rufous-webbed bush tyrant in the monotypic genus Polioxolmis. The two species had diverged around 4.5 million years ago. [2] [3] Based on these results, the genus Polioxolmis was merged into Cnemarchus placing both species in the genus Cnemarchus. [4] [5]
The genus therefore contains the following two species: [5]