New Robin Species Found in Africa in the Central African Republic
8/21/89
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Title: New Robin Species Found in Africa in the Central African Republic
Source: The Associated Press
Status: Copyrighted, contact source to reprint
Date: 8/21/98
Byline: Michael Astor
DURBAN, South Africa (AP) -- American scientists claim they have
discovered a new robin species in the Central African Republic, a
find ornithologists say illustrates how little is known about birds
in Africa.
Pamela Beresford announced the discovery at the 22nd International
Ornithological Congress, which has brought together more than 1,000 of the
world's leading birders in this eastern coast city. The meeting will
continue through Saturday.
A graduate student with the American Museum of Natural History in New
York, Beresford first encountered the bird in November 1996, during a
World Wildlife Fund-sponsored survey in the Central African Republic.
``When we first collected it we thought it was a typical forest robin, but
when we tried to classify it we realized we had something new,'' Beresford
said.
The small olive-brown bird is similar to other forest robins except that
its throat and upper breast are bright yellow-red and it stomach is a
shade of yellow.
Other forest robins typically have white stomachs and upper breasts.
Beresford had to examine some 300 specimens from 89 different areas at
seven museums before she was convinced it was a new species.
``Sometimes you know right away that it's a new bird, sometimes you have
to look at other specimens,'' said Dr. Joel Cracraft, curator of the
American Museum of Natural History's Department of Ornithology and co-
discoverer of the bird.
Beresford declined to provide other details such as the bird's name,
height and weight until after a full scientific description is published -
- probably sometime next year.
The robin is one of the most common low-flying birds in the lowland
African rain forest. It just hasn't been recorded before because there's
still so much ground to cover.
``There's never been an inventory of Central African rain forest before
us,'' Beresford said.
Dr. Phil Hockey, a professor of ornithology at the University of Cape
Town, said that while the new robin is an exciting find, it may only be
one of many more to come.
``Ten or so years ago, ornithologists were saying that by now all the bird
species would be known. But today new species are popping up all over the
place,'' said Hockey.
He said there is also a new lark and a new cisticola species awaiting
description as well as a host of birds, who have been seen but not yet
captured, that scientists suspect are new species.
Many areas like eastern Cameroon, northwestern Congo and northern
Mozambique haven't been studied because of their remoteness and political
instability, and are likely to harbor new species, said Hockey.
Over the last 50 years, 47 new species have been found using what Hockey
called the ``pith helmet and butterfly net technique'' -- in other words,
by birders going out into the forest and catching new specimens.
Many more new species have been discovered in recent years through modern
techniques. DNA analysis has shown that birds of similar appearance that
were thought to belong to the same species are in fact genetically quite
different.
Copyright 1998 by The Associated Press