Black-tailed Whistler Pachycephala melanura Scientific name definitions

Pachycephala melanura dahli Reichenow, 1897, Ornithologische Monatsberichte 5:178.—Credner Islands, Bismarck Archipelago. (8 Reichenow, A. (1897). Pachycephala melanura dahli Rchw. n. subsp. Ornithologische Monatsberichte 5:178-179 Close )

Three syntypes are held in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, all collected by Karl Friedrich Theodor Dahl (1856‒1929), as follows: adult male without an original label collected in “east New Britain” in 1896 (ZMB 49/180), an adult female collected on Pigeon Island on 24 July 1896 (ZMB 2000/21850), and a second adult male collected on Big Pigeon Island on 2 August 1896 (ZMB 2000/21851) (G. M. Kirwan pers. obs., July 2025).

Synonyms:
? Pachycephala innominata Salvadori, 1881, Ornitologia della Papuasia e delle Molucche, Part 2, p. 222.—Teste Island, southeastern New Guinea (has been considered unidentifiable, see 9 Galbraith, I. C. J. (1956). Variation, relationships and evolution in the Pachycephala pectoralis superspecies (Aves, Muscicapidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Zoology 4:133–222. Close ). The whereabouts of the type material on which this name is based does not appear to have been identified.
Pachycephala pectoralis neuhausi Stresemann, 1934, Ornithologische Monatsberichte 42:24.—Mali, Lihir Islands [New Ireland Province] (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ). The holotype, an adult male collected at Sinabeit on 25 March 1933 by Otto Meyer (1877–1937), is held in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin (ZMB 33.569) (G. M. Kirwan pers. obs., July 2025). Treated as a synonym of dahli by Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ).
Pachycephala pectoralis fergussonis Mayr, 1936, American Museum Novitates 869:2.—Fergusson Island, D’Entrecasteaux Archipelago (11 Mayr, E. (1936). New subspecies of birds from the New Guinea region. American Museum Novitates 869:1–7. Close ). The holotype, an adult male collected on 19 January 1929 during the Whitney South Sea Expedition, is held in the American Museum of Natural History, New York (AMNH 330000), along with a paratype, AMNH 330001, collected on 18 January 1929 (7 LeCroy, M. (2010). Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 8. Passeriformes: Pachycephalidae, Aegithalidae, Remizidae, Paridae, Sittidae, Neosittidae, Certhiidae, Rhabdornithidae, Climacteridae, Dicaeidae, Pardalotidae, and Nectariniidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 333:1–178. Close ). Treated as a synonym of dahli by Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ).

Bismarck Archipelago (Crown Island, Long Island, Tolokiwa, small islets around New Britain, Vitu islands, Blanche Bay, islands in Bungula Bay, Duke of York islands, Talele, Uatom, Palikuru islands, Nusa and islets between Lavongai [New Hanover] and Latangai [New Ireland], Mali, Tanga, Nissan Island), extreme northwestern Solomons (small islands west of Shortland), and southeastern New Guinea coast east from Hall Sound, including Fergusson Island and other islands off tip.

Subspecies dahli is like spinicaudus, but females have the throat and breast with dark shaft streaks and underparts much brighter yellow.

Pachycephala melanura Gould, 1843, Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1842(1):134.—north coast of Australia (12 Gould, J. (1843). Exhibition and description of thirty new species of Australian birds. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 10(1842):131-140 Close ); restricted to Derby, west Kimberly District (13 Mathews, G. M. (1920). The Birds of Australia. Volume 8, part 1. H. F. & G. Witherby, London, UK. Close ).

In a separate account, Gould stated that “Pachycephala melanura is a native of the northern coasts of Australia, where it was procured by B. Bynoe, Esq., during the surveying voyage of H.M.S. the Beagle” and that “I have not yet seen a female of this fine species wanting which I have figured two males”. Meyer de Schauensee (14 Meyer de Schauensee, R. (1957). On some avian types, principally Gould’s, in the collection of the Academy. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 109:123‒246. Close ) reported the presence of two co-types [= syntypes] of Gould’s name (ANSP 15223 and ANSP 15224) in what is now the Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University, Philadelphia, although Stone (14 Meyer de Schauensee, R. (1957). On some avian types, principally Gould’s, in the collection of the Academy. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 109:123‒246. Close ) had selected the first-named as the type, which in many similar cases has been regarded as a lectotype designation.

Synonyms:
Both hilli and violetae are technically not synonyms of nominate melanura, but likely represent intergrades between the nominate subspecies and robusta.
Eopsaltria hilli A. J. Campbell, 1910, Emu 10:168.—Hecla Island, Parry Harbour, northwest Australia (15 Campbell, A. J. (1910). [Exhibits]. Emu 10:167–169. Close ). The holotype, an adult female collected on 14 November 1909 by Gerald Freer Hill (1880‒1954), is held in the Museum Victoria, Melbourne (NMV HLW 1600). Treated as a valid subspecies by Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ).
Pachycephala gutturalis consobrina Mathews, 1912, Austral Avian Record 1:76.—Buchanan Island, entrance to Apsley Strait, Tiwi Islands, Northern Territory (16 Mathews, G. M. (1912). Additions and corrections to my references list to the birds of Australia. Austral Avian Record 1(3):73-80 Close ). The holotype, an adult male collected on 17 February 1912 by John Porter Rogers (1873‒1941), is held in the American Museum of Natural History, New York (AMNH 657882). Galbraith (9 Galbraith, I. C. J. (1956). Variation, relationships and evolution in the Pachycephala pectoralis superspecies (Aves, Muscicapidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Zoology 4:133–222. Close ) did not mention consobrina; Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ) synonymized it with violetae.
Pachycephala gutturalis violetae Mathews, 1912, Austral Avian Record 1:76.—western Northern Territory (16 Mathews, G. M. (1912). Additions and corrections to my references list to the birds of Australia. Austral Avian Record 1(3):73-80 Close ). The holotype, an adult male collected on the Daly River on 10 September 1894 by Knut Dahl (1871–1951), is held in the American Museum of Natural History, New York (AMNH 657875), along with the sole paratype, AMNH 657876, a female also collected on the Daly River on 1 September 1894 by Dahl (7 LeCroy, M. (2010). Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 8. Passeriformes: Pachycephalidae, Aegithalidae, Remizidae, Paridae, Sittidae, Neosittidae, Certhiidae, Rhabdornithidae, Climacteridae, Dicaeidae, Pardalotidae, and Nectariniidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 333:1–178. Close ). Galbraith (9 Galbraith, I. C. J. (1956). Variation, relationships and evolution in the Pachycephala pectoralis superspecies (Aves, Muscicapidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Zoology 4:133–222. Close ) and Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ) recognized violetae, but see Schodde and Mason (17 Schodde, R., and I. J. Mason (1999). The Directory of Australian Birds: a Taxonomic and Zoogeographic Atlas of the Biodiversity of Birds in Australia and its Territories. Volume 1. Passerines. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Victoria, Australia. Close ).
Pachycephala gutturalis longirostris F. R. Zietz, 1914, South Australian Ornithologist 1:15.—Melville Island, Northern Territory (18 Zietz, F. R. (1914). The avifauna of Melville Island, Northern Territory. South Australian Ornithologist 1(1):11-18 Close ). The holotype, a male collected on 29 July 1913 by W. D. Dodd, is held in the South Australian Museum, Adelaide (SAM B1283) (19 Condon, H. T. (1976). Vertebrate type-specimens in the South Australian Museum. IV. Birds. Records of the South Australian Museum 17(10):189–195. Close ).
Pachycephala robusta borroloola Mathews, 1918, Austral Avian Record 3:137.—MacArthur River, eastern Northern Territory (20 Mathews, G. M. (1918). On Pachycephala melanura Gould. Austral Avian Record 3(6):134-138 Close ). Mathews (20 Mathews, G. M. (1918). On Pachycephala melanura Gould. Austral Avian Record 3(6):134-138 Close ) did not designate a type in the original description or say how many specimens he examined, but described only male plumage. The lectotype, an adult male collected at Borroloola, on the lower McArthur River, on 23 June 1913 by Henry (Harry) Greensill Barnard (1869‒1966), is held in the American Museum of Natural History, New York (AMNH 657894) was designated by LeCroy (7 LeCroy, M. (2010). Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 8. Passeriformes: Pachycephalidae, Aegithalidae, Remizidae, Paridae, Sittidae, Neosittidae, Certhiidae, Rhabdornithidae, Climacteridae, Dicaeidae, Pardalotidae, and Nectariniidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 333:1–178. Close ); a female, AMNH 657895, bearing the same data became a paralectotype (7 LeCroy, M. (2010). Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 8. Passeriformes: Pachycephalidae, Aegithalidae, Remizidae, Paridae, Sittidae, Neosittidae, Certhiidae, Rhabdornithidae, Climacteridae, Dicaeidae, Pardalotidae, and Nectariniidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 333:1–178. Close ). Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ) treated borroloola as a synonym of P. pectoralis violetae.
Pachycephala robusta intercedens Mathews, 1920, The Birds of Australia, Volume 8, p. 227.—Normanton, Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland (13 Mathews, G. M. (1920). The Birds of Australia. Volume 8, part 1. H. F. & G. Witherby, London, UK. Close ). Known from the following syntypes held in the American Museum of Natural History New York: AMNH 657896, adult male, 21 March 1914; AMNH 657897, adult male, 18 February 1914; AMNH 657898, adult male, 1 April 1914; AMNH 657899, adult male, 15 April 1914; AMNH 657900, immature male, 5 December 1913; AMNH 657901, immature male, 1 April 1914; AMNH 657902, female, 24 March 1914; AMNH 657903, female?, 21 March 1914; AMNH 657904, female, 16 April 1914, all collected at Normanton by Robin Kemp (1871‒1949). Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ) listed intercedens as a synonym of P. pectoralis violetae.

Coasts of northern and northwestern Western Australia (Kimberley and Pilbara).

See Plumages.

Pachycephala robusta Masters, 1876, Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1:49.—Cape York. (21 Masters, G. (1876). Ornithology of the Chevert, part I. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1:44-64 Close )

The holotype, an adult female collected on 20 September 1875 by George Masters (1837–1912), is held in the Australian Museum, Sydney (AM O.43509) (22 Longmore, N. W. (1991). Type specimens of birds in the Australian Museum. Technical Reports of the Australian Museum 4:1–42. Close ); it was formerly in the Macleay Museum, University of Sydney (23 Stanbury, P. J. (1969). Type specimens of birds in the Macleay Museum. III. Birds. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 93:457–461. Close ).

Synonym:
Pachycephala melanura bynoei Mathews, 1918, Austral Avian Record 3:136.—Port Hedland, Western Australia (20 Mathews, G. M. (1918). On Pachycephala melanura Gould. Austral Avian Record 3(6):134-138 Close ). The holotype, an adult male collected on 22 October 1914 by Frederick Bulstrode Lawson Whitlock (1860‒1953), is held in the American Museum for Natural History, New York (AMNH 657830) (7 LeCroy, M. (2010). Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 8. Passeriformes: Pachycephalidae, Aegithalidae, Remizidae, Paridae, Sittidae, Neosittidae, Certhiidae, Rhabdornithidae, Climacteridae, Dicaeidae, Pardalotidae, and Nectariniidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 333:1–178. Close ). Subspecies recognized as valid by Mayr (10 Mayr, E. (1967). Subfamily Pachycephalinae, whistlers or thickheads. In Check-list of Birds of the World, Volume 12 (R. A. Paynter, Editor), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, MA, USA. pp. 3–51. Close ).

Northern Western Australia (from about the Cambridge Gulf) east across coastal Northern Territory (including islands of Bathurst, Melville, and Groote Eylandt) to northern and northeastern Queensland (western and eastern sides of Cape York Peninsula, south on east coast to around Shoalwater Bay).

Subspecies robusta male has hindneck-collar and breast-band broader, back and wings brighter, rectrices (including bases) black, narrowly tipped olive-gray, and thighs black with yellow tips; female has upperparts olive, upper breast light gray-brown, and rest of underparts yellow.

Pteruthius spinicaudus Pucheran, 1853, Voyage au Pole Sud et dans l’Océanie sur les corvettes l’Astrolabe et la Zélée; exécuté par ordre du Roi pendant les années 1837-1838-1839-1840: Zoologie, Tome 3, p. 58; Zoologie, Atlas, Plate 6, fig. 2.—Warrior Island, Torres Strait. (24 Pucheran, J. (1853). Zoologie 3 (Mammifères et Oiseaux). Pp. 47-158 in: Hombron, J.B. & Jacquinot, C.H. eds. (1853). Voyage au Pôle Sud et dans l’Océanie sur les Corvettes l’Astrolabe et la Zélée, Exécuté [...] pendant les Années 1837-1840, sous le Commandement de M. J. Dumont d’Urville. Gide et Baudry, Paris. In French. Close )

The holotype, an immature male collected between 17 and 20 April 1839 by Jacques Bernard Hombron (1798–1852) and Honoré Jacquinot (1815‒1887), is held in the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris (MNHN-ZO-2023-416).

Southern New Guinea (from Merauke east along coast to Hall Sound) and islands in Torres Strait.

Subspecies spinicaudus is like robusta, but females have the crown and breast browner, and chin and throat more boldly marked.