Tiny Bird, Huge Mystery - The Possibly Extinct Hooded Seedeater (Sporophila melanops) Is a Capuchino with a Melanistic Cap

Known with certainty solely from a unique male specimen collected in central Brazil in the first quarter of the 19th century, the Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct) Hooded Seedeater Sporophila melanops has been one of the great enigmas of Neotropical ornithology, arguably the only one of a host of long-lost species from Brazil to remain obstinately undiscovered. We reanalysed the morphology of the type specimen, as well as a female specimen postulated to represent the same taxon, and sequenced mitochondrial DNA (COI and Cyt-b) from both individuals. Furthermore, we visited the type locality, at the border between Goiás and Mato Grosso, and its environs on multiple occasions at different seasons, searching for birds with similar morphology to the type, without success. Novel genetic and morphological evidence clearly demonstrates that the type of S. melanops is not closely related to Yellow-bellied Seedeater S. nigricollis, as has been frequently postulated in the literature, but is in fact a representative of one of the so-called capuchinos, a clade of attractively plumaged seedeaters that breed mostly in the Southern Cone of South America. Our morphological analysis indicates that S. melanops has a hitherto unreported dark-coffee throat and that it is probably a Dark-throated Seedeater S. ruficollis collected within its wintering range, acquiring breeding plumage and showing melanism on the cap feathers. Alternatively, it may be a melanistic-capped individual of a local population of seedeaters known to breed in the Esteros del Iberá, Corrientes, Argentina, to which the name S. ruficollis might be applicable, whilst the name S. plumbeiceps might be available for what is currently known as S. ruficollis. A hybrid origin for S. melanops cannot be ruled out from the available data, but seems unlikely. The purported female specimen of S. melanops pertains either to S. nigricollis or to Double-collared Seedeater S. caerulescens based on genetic and morphological data, and thus cannot be a female of S. melanops. We conclude that Sporophila melanops is not typical of any natural population of seedeaters, appears to have been collected far from its breeding grounds while overwintering in central Brazil, and should not be afforded any conservation status.Fil: Areta, Juan Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Museo de Ciencias Naturales. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA; ArgentinaFil: Piacentini, Vítor de Q. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: Haring, Elisabeth. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Gamauf, Anita. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Silveira, Luís Fábio. Universidad de Viena; AustriaFil: Machado, Erika. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: Kirwan, Guy M.. The Field Museum; Estados Unido

Photography-based taxonomy is inadequate, unnecessary, and potentially harmful for biological sciences

The question whether taxonomic descriptions naming new animal species without type specimen(s) deposited in collections should be accepted for publication by scientific journals and allowed by the Code has already been discussed in Zootaxa (Dubois & Nemésio 2007; Donegan 2008, 2009; Nemésio 2009a–b; Dubois 2009; Gentile & Snell 2009; Minelli 2009; Cianferoni & Bartolozzi 2016; Amorim et al. 2016). This question was again raised in a letter supported by 35 signatories published in the journal Nature (Pape et al. 2016) on 15 September 2016. On 25 September 2016, the following rebuttal (strictly limited to 300 words as per the editorial rules of Nature) was submitted to Nature, which on 18 October 2016 refused to publish it. As we think this problem is a very important one for zoological taxonomy, this text is published here exactly as submitted to Nature, followed by the list of the 493 taxonomists and collection-based researchers who signed it in the short time span from 20 September to 6 October 2016

Comparison of the male type specimen of Hooded Seedeater <i>Sporophila melanops</i> (first on the right; NMW 20.316) with four differently plumaged male Dark-throated Seedeaters <i>S</i>. <i>ruficollis</i> (NMW 20.333, 20.330, 20.331, and 20.332) exemplifying intraspecific variation and different stages of breeding plumage acquisition.

<p>The specimen to the left of the type was collected at the same time and place, and exhibits the same moult phenology and plumage pattern, further suggesting that the type specimen is an aberrant individual of <i>S</i>. <i>ruficollis</i> with a black cap.</p

Comparison of the presumed female Hooded Seedeater <i>Sporophila melanops</i> (centre; AMNH 514890) with females of Double-collared Seedeater <i>S</i>. <i>caerulescens</i> (two on the left; AMNH 798423, 774792) and Yellow-bellied Seedeater <i>S</i>. <i>nigricollis</i> (two on the right; AMNH 318211, 163577).

<p>A) Ventral view, B) dorsal view, and C) lateral (left side) view. Morphological and genetic comparisons indicate that this female belongs to the <i>S</i>. <i>caerulescens</i>/<i>nigricollis</i> clade, and not to the capuchinos clade, where both morphological and genetic analyses place the male type of <i>S</i>. <i>melanops</i>.</p

Main localities sampled for <i>Sporophila</i> seedeaters in the Araguaia and Tocantins river basins, central Brazil, in 2001–2002 and 2009–2011.

<p>The type locality of Hooded Seedeater <i>Sporophila melanops</i> is indicated by the letter “T” (= locality 14). Brazilian states are indicated by their official acronyms, as follows: PA = Pará, MT = Mato Grosso, MS = Mato Grosso do Sul, TO = Tocantins, GO = Goiás, and MG = Minas Gerais. Localities: 1. Araguacema; 2. Guaraí; 3. Barreira do Campo; 4. Caseara; 5. Miranorte/Miracema; 6. Fazenda Fartura, Santana do Araguaia; 7. Aparecida do Rio Negro; 8. Lagoa da Confusão 9. Luiz Alves/São Miguel do Araguaia; 10. Pantanal do Rio das Mortes; 11. Road to Rio do Peixe, northern Aruanã; 12. Cocalinho; 13. Aruanã; 14. Registro do Araguaia (type locality); 15. Barra do Garças/Serra Azul; 16. road to Torixoréu; 17. Alto Araguaia/rio Babilônia; and 18. Emas National Park. For a detailed itinerary of the three field trips in 2008–2010 see <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0154231#pone.0154231.s003" target="_blank">S3 Appendix</a>.</p

Comparison of the male type specimen of Hooded Seedeater <i>Sporophila melanops</i> (centre; NMW 20.316) with an equivalently plumaged male Dark-throated Seedeater <i>S</i>. <i>ruficollis</i> (left; NMW 20.332) and a fully adult male Yellow-bellied Seedeater <i>S</i>. <i>nigricollis</i> (right; NMW 20.463).

<p>A) Ventral view, B) dorsal view, and C) lateral (left side) view. Throat patch colour and shape, extension and shape of the cap, and dorsal and ventral coloration, as well as mensural data, support the inclusion of <i>S</i>. <i>melanops</i> within the capuchinos clade. Genetic data strongly support the morphological conclusion.</p

Tiny Bird, Huge Mystery—The Possibly Extinct Hooded Seedeater (Sporophila melanops) Is a Capuchino with a Melanistic Cap

Known with certainty solely from a unique male specimen collected in central Brazil in the first quarter of the 19th century, the Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct) Hooded Seedeater Sporophila melanops has been one of the great enigmas of Neotropical ornithology, arguably the only one of a host of long-lost species from Brazil to remain obstinately undiscovered. We reanalysed the morphology of the type specimen, as well as a female specimen postulated to represent the same taxon, and sequenced mitochondrial DNA (COI and Cyt-b) from both individuals. Furthermore, we visited the type locality, at the border between Goiás and Mato Grosso, and its environs on multiple occasions at different seasons, searching for birds with similar morphology to the type, without success. Novel genetic and morphological evidence clearly demonstrates that the type of S. melanops is not closely related to Yellow-bellied Seedeater S. nigricollis, as has been frequently postulated in the literature, but is in fact a representative of one of the so-called capuchinos, a clade of attractively plumaged seedeaters that breed mostly in the Southern Cone of South America. Our morphological analysis indicates that S. melanops has a hitherto unreported dark-coffee throat and that it is probably a Dark-throated Seedeater S. ruficollis collected within its wintering range, acquiring breeding plumage and showing melanism on the cap feathers. Alternatively, it may be a melanistic-capped individual of a local population of seedeaters known to breed in the Esteros del Iberá, Corrientes, Argentina, to which the name S. ruficollis might be applicable, whilst the name S. plumbeiceps might be available for what is currently known as S. ruficollis. A hybrid origin for S. melanops cannot be ruled out from the available data, but seems unlikely. The purported female specimen of S. melanops pertains either to S. nigricollis or to Double-collared Seedeater S. caerulescens based on genetic and morphological data, and thus cannot be a female of S. melanops. We conclude that Sporophila melanops is not typical of any natural population of seedeaters, appears to have been collected far from its breeding grounds while overwintering in central Brazil, and should not be afforded any conservation status

Seasonal and daily patterns of group size, cohesion and activity of the estuarine dolphin, Sotalia guianensis (P.J. van Bénéden) (Cetacea, Delphinidae), in southern Brazil Padrões sazonais e diários do tamanho de grupo, coesão e atividade do boto-cinza, Sotalia guianensis (P.J. van Bénéden) (Cetacea, Delphinidae), no sul do Brasil

The resident population of estuarine dolphin, Sotalia guianensis (P.J. van Bénéden, 1864), in Norte Bay, Santa Catarina, southern Brazil, was studied from 2000 to 2003. Systematic one-day cruises were undertaken aboard a 5 m sail boat equipped with an outboard motor. Applying the focal-group method, information such as geographical position, predominant behavioural patterns, group size, cohesion index and the presence of calves, were registered at every five-minute interval, totalling 198 hours of direct observation of the dolphins. The estuarine dolphin used preferential areas for each behavioural pattern. The mean group size was approximately 29 individuals, and the presence of calves occurred throughout the entire year, but with a significant increase in the warm seasons. The frequency of behavioural patterns and group size varied according to season and time of day, and were strongly associated. The frequency of moving behaviours increased in the cold seasons and along the day. The seasonal variation in the moving behaviours suggest the requirement of a larger area in the cold seasons, probably related to seasonal fluctuations in the abundance of dominant prey items. Higher group sizes were observed while dolphins were foraging. The cohesion index also varied according to the behaviour. Our results showed that group organization and behavioural patterns of this estuarine dolphin population are probably linked to daily and seasonal environment cycles, and also possibly to the condition of being at the furthest southern limit of distribution of the species.<br>A população residente de boto-cinza, Sotalia guianensis (P.J. van Bénéden, 1864), da Baía Norte, Santa Catarina, sul do Brasil, foi estudada de 2000 a 2003. Foram realizados cruzeiros sistemáticos de um dia, a bordo de um veleiro de 5 m equipado com motor de popa. Utilizando o método de grupo-focal, informações como posição geográfica, padrão comportamental predominante, tamanho de grupo, índice de coesão e presença de filhotes, foram registradas a cada intervalo de cinco minutos, totalizando 198 horas de observação direta dos botos. O boto-cinza utilizou áreas preferenciais para cada padrão comportamental. O tamanho médio de grupo foi aproximadamente de 29 indivíduos, e a presença de filhotes ocorreu ao longo de todo o ano, porém com aumento significante nas estações quentes. A freqüência dos padrões comportamentais e o tamanho de grupo apresentaram forte correlação, e variaram em relação à estação do ano e hora do dia. Os comportamentos de movimento foram mais freqüentes nas estações frias e ao longo do dia. A variação sazonal destes comportamentos sugere o requerimento de maiores áreas nas estações frias, provavelmente relacionado com as flutuações sazonais de abundância e dominância de presas. Os maiores tamanhos de grupo ocorreram em comportamentos de forrageio. O índice de coesão também variou com o comportamento. Nossos resultados demonstram que a organização de grupo e os padrões comportamentais desta população de boto-cinza são provavelmente influenciados por ciclos ambientais diários e sazonais, e pela condição de limite sul de distribuição para a espécie