Cardinal Quelea

SCI Name:  Quelea cardinalis
Protonym:  Hyphantica cardinalis J.Orn. 28 p.325
Taxonomy:  Passeriformes / Ploceidae / Quelea
Taxonomy Code:  carque1
Type Locality:  Lado.
Author:  Hartlaub
Publish Year:  1880
IUCN Status:  Least Concern

DEFINITIONS

QUELEA
(Ploceidae; Ϯ Red-billed Quelea Q. quelea) Specific name Emberiza quelea Linnaeus, 1758. Reichenbach's 1850, plate LXXVI, labelled Passerinae: Fringillinae Ploceinae, includes a variety of weavers, finches and waxbills, and shows the distinctive head-pattern of the male Red-billed Quelea. "950. Quelea, Reichenb. 1850. (Ploceus, p. Gr.).   Africa.   1.    LOXIA sanguinirostris, L. (Emberiza quelea, L. - Passer senegalensis erythrorhynchos, Briss. - Fringilla quelea, Licht. - Loxia lathami, Smith. jun. - Ploceus sanguinirostris et Amadina! lathami, Gr. nec Gould.) Pl. enl. 183. 2. et 223. I. - Edw. B. t. 271. 2. - Vieill. Ois. Chant. t. 22. mas. 23. faem. 24. var.  ex Afr. or. occ. et mer." (Bonaparte 1850); "Quelea Reichenbach, 1850, Av. Syst. Nat., pl. 76, fig. 5. Type, by tautonymy, Emberiza quelea Linnaeus." (Moreau in Peters 1962, XV, 61); "Quelea Reichenbach, 1850, Avium Systema Naturale, pl. LXXVI (no specific names given).  Type, by subsequent designation (G. Gray, 1855, Cat. Genera Subgenera Birds Brit. Mus., p. 70), Loxia sanguinirostris "Linn." auct. = Emberiza quelea Linnaeus, 1758." (JAJ 2021).  Drastic measures, including gassing, burning, and the use of explosives, have been used to curb the locust-like hordes of Red-billed Queleas which can have such a devastating effect upon agriculture in tropical Africa.
Var. Quela.
Synon. Hyphantica, Queleopsis.

quelea
Med. L. qualea quail. The relevance of this name to the Afrotropical queleas is unclear, but Jeffreys 1973, suggested a connection between the pestilential swarms of queleas that ravage the crops of modern Africa and the huge numbers of quail Coturnix that fell upon the camp of the Israelites, “as it were a day’s journey on this side, and as it were a day’s journey on the other side, round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth” (Numbers XI 31). Gotch 1987, believes it to be from an African native name, but perhaps has confused it with Dioch, a name formerly used as an English substantive, originally given to the Red-billed Quelea by the Yolof, a people of Senegambia (Quelea).

CARDINALIS
(Cardinalidae; Ϯ Northern Cardinal C. cardinalis) Specific name Loxia cardinalis Linnaeus, 1758. "Mercurialis affirms, that by the Portugues it is commonly called, The Cardinal bird, because it is of a scarlet (purpurei) colour, and seems to wear on its Head a red hat" (Ray 1678); "20. CARDINALIS VIRGINIANUS, Nob.  C. ruber; gula et capistro nigris; cauda valde rotundata; rostro conico, subdentato.   Hab. Throughout N. America.   Finding in the collection of the Zoological Society two beautiful undescribed species of this my new form, I take this opportunity of making them known, especially as both come from Mexico. They all preserve the short rounded wings and lengthened tail, and even the crested head and red colours. As to the different shape of the bills, it is only an additional proof of the little importance to be attached to the form of that member in the conirostral birds.    CARDINALIS PHŒNICEUS, Gould.  ...  A small but most splendid species, received by Mr. Gould from the country south of the Bay of Honduras.    CARDINALIS SINUATUS, Nob.  ...  Hab. Western parts of Mexico." (Bonaparte 1838); "Genus 159. CARDINALIS, Nob.   233. CARDINALIS VIRGINIANUS, Nob. (Loxia cardinalis, L.)  Aud. pl. 159.  Southern parts." (Bonaparte 1838); "Cardinalis Bonaparte, 1838,² Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 5 (1837), p. 111. Type, by subsequent designation (G. R. Gray, 1840, List Genera Birds, p. 43), Cardinalis virginianus Bonaparte = Loxia cardinalis Linnaeus.  ...  ² Cardinalis Bonaparte is No. 1728 on the Official List of Generic Names in Zoology (Opinion 784, Bull. Zool. Nomencl., 23, pp. 201-209, 1966)." (Paynter in Peters, 1970, XIII, p. 220).
Synon. Pyrrhuloxia, Richmondena.
● (Thraupidae; syn. Piranga Ϯ Scarlet Tanager P. olivacea) Med. L. cardinalis  cardinal, bishop  < L. cardo, cardinis  hinge, pivot.; "b. TANGARZYK.  CARDINALIS.  Tangara - Cardinal. Fran.  ...  n. p. Tanagra rubra. GL." (Jarocki 1821); "Cardinalis Jarocki, 1821, Zoologiia, II, p. 133.  Type, by monotypy, Tanagra rubra Gm., i.e. Linnaeus, 1766 (not Fringilla rubra Linnaeus, 1758) = Tanagra olivacea Gmelin, 1789." (JAJ 2021).

cardinalis
Med. L. cardinalis  cardinal, senior bishop of the Roman Catholic church who wears a scarlet cap and robes  < L. cardo, cardinis  hinge, pivot.
● "96. LOXIA.  ...  Cardinalis.  5. L. rubra, facie nigra. Chin. Lagerstr. 13.  Cardinalis. Will. orn. 245. t. 44. f. 8.  Coccothraustes capensis ruber, rostro hiante. Pet. gaz. 16. t. 16. f. 7.  Coccothraustes rubra. Catesb. car. I. p. 38. t. 38. Frisch. ornith. I. t. 4. f. 1.  Coccothraustes indica cristata. Alb. orn. I. p. 55. t. 57. & 3. t. 61. Aldr. orn. l. 16. c. 21. Raj. av. 85.  Psittacus cristatus ruber. Seb. mus. I. p. 96. t. 60. f. 4.  Habitat in America septentrionali." (Linnaeus 1758) (Cardinalis).
● ex “Lori Cardinal” of Hombron & Jacquinot 1845 (Chalcopsitta).
● ex “Sucrier Cardinalin” of Levaillant 1810, pl. 291 (Cinnyris artefact).
● ex “Lori d’Amboine” of d’Aubenton 1765-1781, pl. 518, “Lori cramoisi” of de Buffon 1770-1783, and “Crimson Lory” of Latham 1781 (syn. Eclectus roratus).
● ex “Cardinal Creeper” of Latham 1782 (It is doubtful whether this is the "Kuyameta" of Vieillot 1802 ("Héoro-taire kuyameta ...Le nom de cet oiseau est celui qu'il porte à l'île de Tanna" (Vieillot 1817))) (Myzomela).
● ex “Grand pic varié de l’isle de Luçon” of de Buffon 1770-1783, “Pic cardinal de l’Île de Luçon” of Sonnerat 1776, and “Cardinal Woodpecker” of Latham 1788 (unident. ?Chrysocolaptes sp?).