a web page by Don Roberson |
SYLVIDS, PARROTBILLS & ALLIES Sylviidae |
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We now know these "warblers" actually are "babblers" (see below). Thus these birds are now better referred to as Sylvia babblers, or sylvid-babblers, or just sylvids. |
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Genetic work (Burns & Barhoum 2006) showed that Wrentit became isolated in the dense California chaparral during the Pleistocene. Its ancestors presumably arrived in North America across the Bering Straits land-bridge. It diverged from its ancestors between 6.5 and 8.1 million years ago. During the cooler centuries of the Pleistocene, over 200,000 years ago, its range was probably restricted to southern California and Baja. With the retreat of the ice age, its range expanded north through the foothill chaparral on both sides of California's Central Valley, eventually reaching southern Oregon. Genetic studies of the Wrentit (Cibois 2003, Burns & Barhoum 2006) have found that its closest relatives were Asian babblers in the genera Alcippe, Chrysomma, and Paradoxornis. However, the genus Alcippe is non-monophyletic [e.g., Golden-breasted Fulvetta "Alcippe" chrysotis has since been transfered to its own genus Lioparus.] What may be the Wrentit's closest relative is Yellow-eyed Babbler Chrysomma sinense of southern Asia (Cibois 2003). |
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The "Old World Warblers," when traditionally assigned to the family Sylviidae, once included ~400 species, the largest family in the Old World. Genetic evidence has shown that this huge "Old World Warbler" assemblage actually represents ten or more different major lineages; Alström et al. (2006), Jønsson & Fjeldså (2006), Barker et al. (2004). The inevitable process of breaking them up into new families and proposing Family names for several of the lineages began with Alström et al. (2006); see a discussion of the Break-up of the Old World Warblers. Among that break-up are the sylvids, now babbers. |
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This causes more problems. The babblers themselves were once considered a huge family of over 300 species. Studies in the mid-2000s began to clarify the situation (e.g., Cibois 2003, Alström et al. 2006, Jønsson & Fjeldså 2006) but there is uncertainty whether the huge babbler assemblage should be allocated to one or two or more families. More recent research, especially Gelang et al. (2009), have led to a "break-up of the Babblers." Cibois et al. (2010) summarized the outlines for five babbler families: tree babblers and scimitar-babblers [Timaliidae], sylvid babblers, parrotbills, and allies [Sylviidae] — the group on this web page, white-eyes and allies [Zosteropidae], fulvettas and ground-babblers [Pellorneidae], and laughingthrushes [Leiothrichidae]. This approach has been adopted by the 2010 version of the IOC world checklist (Gill et al. 2010), and that approach is adopted here. The five-family solution remains tentative and subject to future research. There was yet another problem. Some thought that the name "Sylviidae" should be suppressed because sylvids are now babblers, not Old World warblers [such a decision that can only be taken by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature]. But others (summarized in Cibois et al. 2010) propose that Sylviidae now be used as the Family name for the sylvid-babblers, as these include the Sylvia "warblers" for which the Family gets its name. This solution seems most likely to be adopted. |
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Eight other fulvettas, in the genus Fulvetta, are now split from Alcippe and transferred to the Sylviidae, including Chinese F. striaticollis, Spectacled F. ruficapilla, and "Streak-throated" F. cinereiceps, which is better called Gray-hooded and split into three species (Collar & Robson 2007, Gelang et al. 2009). |
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The center of parrotbill distribution is in China, Tibet, and the northern parts of southeast Asia (n. Burma and Laos especially).The largest one, and the biggest bill, is on the monotypic Great Parrotbill Conostoma oernodium, which lives in bamboo forests of Nepal, Tibet & China. [A species traditionally placed among the parrotbills, when they were considered the Parrotbill family 'Panuridae' in the traditional sense, is Bearded Reedling Panurus biamicus. As it turns out, it is not related to parrotbills at all. It is a very early offshoot of the sylvoid assemblage and is provisionally placed in its own family]. |
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| There are 22 parrotbills in 8 genera in the most recent compilation. One of the larger and most impressive — and also one of the rarest — is the Black-breasted Parrotbill (both photos, below). Given its rarity and elusiveness, I felt fortunate to photograph this species in Kaziranga National Park, India. This species specializes on Phragmites reeds in the floodplain of the Brahmaputra River; these are late succession reeds in seasonally flooded grasslands that exist only in ungrazed area. There are not very good photos but perhaps you can see the huge parrot-like bill as this towhee-sized bird faces the camera. More information is on a separte Black-breasted Parrotbill page. | ||
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We round out the current Sylviidae with some loose ends. One of them is White-browed Chinese Warbler Rhopophilus pekinensis of north China. Although placed among the "Old World Warblers" among all traditional lists, many birders have opined that it acted more like a babbler (and it is; Jonsson & Fjeldså 2006). Fire-tailed Myzornis Myzornis pyrrhoura is provisionally placed here. Several African species also belong here. Abyssinian (African) Hill-Babbler Pseudoalcippe abyssinica, and Ruwenzori Hill Babbler Pseudoalcippe atriceps, of east and northeast Africa, were once assigned to genus Illadopsis, but all the other Illadopsis that have been genetically studied prove to be in the clade now called family Pellorneidae (e.g., Cibois 2003). Abyssinian Catbird Parophasma galinieri and Bush Blackcap Lioptilus nigricapillus, both African oddities, best fit here. Finally, Dohrn's Thrush-Babbler Horizorhinus dohrni, an endemic to the island of Principe in the nation of Sao Tome & Principe, proves to be a sylvid. Indeed, it probably should be placed in genus Sylvia. |
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| Photos: The Sardinian Warbler Sylvia melanocephala was photographed by Blake Matheson at Monfrague, Spain, on 6 Apr 2005. The Wrentit Chamaea fasciata was at Garrapata SP, Monterey Co., California, in April 2010. The Chestnut-vented Warbler S. subcaeruleum was near Brandvlei, South Africa, in July 2006. The Golden-breasted Fulvetta Lioparus chrsotis and Spectacled Parrotbill Sinosuthora conspicillatus were in Foping Nature Reserve, Shaanxii, China, in Nov 2010; the Vinous-throated Parrotbill Sinosuthora webbianus was at Huayang Village, Shaanxii, China, on 8 Nov 2010. The Black-breasted Parrotbill Paradoxornis flavirostris was in Kaziranga Nat'l Park, Assam, India, on 1 Apr 2001. All photos © 2006 Don Roberson, except the photo attributed to Blake Matheson, used with permission; all rights reserved. | ||
Bibliographic notes There is no "family book" on the Sylvid-Babblers but there is a book covering the genus Sylvia — Shirihai et al. (2001) — although I have not yet studied it in detail. It was meant to, and does, cover the genus but not the lineage that also includes parrotbills, Wrentit, and other sylvid-babblers. Most of the remaining species are covered in the Handbook of the Birds of the World account (Collar & Robson 2007) of the formerly broader Babbler assemblage. The text is excellent, with great photos, although it could not have been quite up with the most current taxonomic findings, some of which post-date its publication. Literature cited:
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The Sylviidae has a complex history. The base genus is Sylvia,
a group of ~18 "warblers" found primarily in Europe, north Africa, and
the Middle East. They are skulking birds of the undergrowth — recalling
many babblers in this respect — that are often best seen when sitting
up singing and defending territories. Other well known Sylvia warblers include Eurasian Blackcap S. atricapilla, several species of Whitethroat, and Dartford Warbler S. undata of Europe, which reaches southern England and inhabits dense heath. The Sardinian Warbler (left, in a nice shot by Blake Matheson), is found around the Mediterranean.
There is even a sylvid in the New World: the Wrentit
(right). It is a shy but vocal little bird. Like many Asian babblers,
pairs apparently mate for life and are entirely resident, spending
their entire lives within a few acres of scrub. Like Old World babblers
they are retiring but have characteristic calls. Their "bouncing-ball"
territorial song is easily imitated and is the soundtrack of California
chaparral, but they also give a cat-like purrr and a variety of
scolding notes. At various times Wrentit has been considered most
closely related to bushtits, to titmice, to babblers, to Old World
warblers, or to wrens; it has at various times been elevated to its own
family [Chamaeidae]. Sibley & Ahlquist (1982) used DNA-DNA
hybridization technique to compare it with various babblers and Old
World warblers plus a titmouse, a gnatcatcher, a kinglet, and more
distantly related birds. The results showed that the Wrentit was
closest to certain babblers and to "warblers" in the genus Sylvia.
Indeed, there are many ecological and morphological similarities
between Wrentit and the Dartford Warbler. Both inhabit dense thickets
of woody shrubs, carry their tails cocked up over the back, have bright
irides, eat insects and small fruits, build similar nests, and are
highly vocal. 
There are sylvids in Africa that are closely related to Sylvia. Five species in the genus Parisoma appear to be embedded within Sylvia (see Shirihai et al. 2001) and should all be merged into Sylvia. One of these is Chestnut-vented Warbler P., er, S. subcaeruleum of arid scrub in southwestern Africa (left). 
There are some amazing birds among the new Sylviidae. One of them is Golden-breasted Fulvetta, a species wrongly assigned to Alcippe but now placed in its own genus [Lioparus] and in a different family than the remaining Alcippe
fulvettas. This gorgeous little bird travels in small flocks that very
nervously work through bamboo, constantly moving, and thus hard to
photograph. They range from the Himalayas to central China. 
Another
set of impressive birds now found among the Sylviidae at parrotbills.
They range from tiny birds that travel in flitty packs through bamboo
thickets to large big-billed species. Two of the small ones are Vinous-throated Parrotbill (above) and Spectacled Parrotbill
(right). Vinous-throated is widespread in eastern Asia, moving quickly
in flocks, often in riverine scrub. Spectacled is restricted to montane
bamboo patches in central China. Note how the bill of each species is
compressed to deal with bamboo. 
