McKay's Bunting
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| Plectrophenax hyperboreus Ridgway, 1884 |
The McKay's Bunting, Plectrophenax hyperboreus, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a family now recognized by ornithologists as separate from the finches Fringillidae. It is most closely related to the Snow Bunting P. nivalis. There is only speculation about hybridization, no hybrids between the two species have been confirmed. The Plectrophenax buntings are nested within the Calcarius clade; their closest relatives are the longspurs.
It breeds on two islands in the Bering Sea, St. Matthew and Hall islands, and winters on the western coast of the U.S. state of Alaska.
The population of this species is estimated at less than 6,000 individuals. Although under no immediate threat, it is susceptible to devastation by any introduced rats, weasels or foxes, as well as rising sea levels due to climate change.
The name of this bird honours the American naturalist Charles McKay.
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[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Plectrophenax hyperboreus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened
[edit] External links
[edit] Further reading
[edit] Book
- Lyon, B., and R. Montgomerie. 1995. Snow Bunting and McKay’s Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis and Plectrophenax hyperboreus). In The Birds of North America, No. 198–199. (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and The American Ornithologists’ Union, Washington, D.C.
[edit] Articles
- Maley JM. (2004). A molecular study of Arctic adaptation and evolution in North America's highest latitude endemic passerine: the McKay's Bunting (Plectrophenax hyperboreus). Arctic Science Conference Abstracts. 55th Arctic Science Conference, Anchorage, AK, USA; September 29-October 01, 2004.
- Johnson JA, Matsuoka SM, Ruthrauff DR, Litzow MA & Dementyev MN. (2004). Additions to the avifauna of St. Matthew Island, Bering Sea. Western Birds. vol 35, no 1. p. 50-52.
- Lyon B & Montgomerie R. (1995). Snow Bunting and McKay's Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis and Plectrophenax hyperboreus). Birds of North America. vol 0, no 198-199. p. 1-28.
- Sealy SG. (1969). Apparent Hybridization between Snow Bunting and Mckays Bunting on St-Lawrence Island Alaska USA. Auk. vol 86, no 2. p. 350-351.
- Sealy SG. (1972). Additional Winter Records of the Mckays Bunting. Canadian Field Naturalist. vol 86, no 4. p. 386-388.
- Winker K, Gibson DD, Sowls AL, Lawhead BE, Martin PD, Hoberg EP & Causey D. (2002). The birds of St. Matthew Island, Bering Sea. Wilson Bulletin. vol 114, no 4. p. 491-509.
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