Nyctibius
Common potoo (N. griseus)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Clade: Strisores
Order: Nyctibiiformes
Family: Nyctibiidae
Subfamily: Nyctibiinae
Genus: Nyctibius
Vieillot, 1816
Type species
Caprimulgus grandis (great potoo)
Species

See text

Nyctibius is a genus of potoos, nocturnal birds in the family Nyctibiidae.

Etymology

The genus Nyctibius was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot to accommodate a single species, Comte de Buffon's "Le Grande Engoulevent de Cayenne", the great potoo, which thus becomes the type species.[1][2] The genus name is from Ancient Greek nuktibios meaning "night-feeding", from nux night and bios "life".[3]

Distribution

They are found throughout much of Mexico, Central America, South America, and parts of the Caribbean.[4]

Taxonomy

They are one of two genera in the family, the other being the monotypic genus Phyllaemulor (containing only the rufous potoo). Prior to 2018, they were considered the only extant genus within the Nyctibiidae; however, a study that year found a deep divergence between the rufous potoo and all other species in the genus, leading it to be described in a new genus and expanding the number of genera within the family.[5] This was followed by the International Ornithological Congress in 2022.[6] The genus Nyctibius contains six species:[4]

ImageCommon NameScientific nameDistribution
Great potooNyctibius grandis (Gmelin 1789)southern Mexico through northeastern Guatemala and through most of Central America down through South America as far as southeastern Brazil and Bolivia.
Long-tailed potooNyctibius aethereus (zu Wied-Neuwied 1820)from Ecuador and Peru east through southern Colombia and Venezuela to the Guianas, in far northern Bolivia, northeastern Argentina, southeastern Paraguay, and southeastern Brazil
Northern potooNyctibius jamaicensis (Gmelin 1789)across Central America and the Caribbean.
Common potoo or lesser potooNyctibius griseus (Gmelin 1789)Caribbean plain of Colombia
Andean potooNyctibius maculosus Ridgway 1912Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela
White-winged potooNyctibius leucopterus (zu Wied-Neuwied 1821)Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela

References

  1. Vieillot, Louis Pierre (1816). Analyse d'une Nouvelle Ornithologie Élémentaire (in French). Paris: Deterville/self. p. 38.
  2. Peters, James Lee, ed. (1940). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 4. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 179.
  3. Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 277. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  4. 1 2 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2022). "Frogmouths, Oilbird, potoos, nightjars". IOC World Bird List Version 12.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  5. Costa, Thiago V. V.; Whitney, Bret M.; Braun, Michael J.; White, Noor D.; Silveira, Luís Fábio; Cleere, Nigel (2018-04-01). "A systematic reappraisal of the Rufous Potoo Nyctibius bracteatus (Nyctibiidae) and description of a new genus". Journal of Ornithology. 159 (2): 367–377. doi:10.1007/s10336-017-1511-2. ISSN 2193-7206. S2CID 4524359.
  6. "Nightjars, Oilbird, potoos, frogmouths – IOC World Bird List". Retrieved 2022-08-25.
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