The intermediate egret (Ardea intermedia), median egret, smaller egret or medium egret, is a medium-sized heron. Some taxonomists put the species in the genus Egretta or Mesophoyx. It is a resident breeder in southern and eastern Asia.
Some authorities classify the intermediate egret in its own monotypic genus, Mesophoyx, while others place it with the smaller egrets in Egretta.
There were three recognised subspecies, and these are sometimes raised in to species:
A. i. brachyrhyncha Brehm, 1854 "yellow-billed egret" - sub-Saharan Africa
A.i. intermedia Wagler, 1827 "intermediate egret" - Asia from the Russian Far East to Japan to India and the Greater Sundas
A. i. plumifera Gould, 1848 "plumed egret" - eastern Indonesia, New Guinea and Australia.
A.(i.) intermedia differs from A.(i.) brachyrhyncha and A. (i.) plumifera by having a black bill when in breeding plumage, while A.(i.) plumifera has a yellow-and-pink bill and A. (i.) brachyrhyncha has much yellower lores and face. A further difference between this species and the "yellow-billed" species is that the intermediate egret has black at the top of the legs compared to reddish in the yellow-billed egret.
The split of intermediate egret into 3 species was accepted by the IOC on 26 September 2023, this form was given the common name medium egret by the IOC.
No comments:
Post a Comment