Red-billed Blue-Magpie

SCI Name:  Urocissa erythroryncha
Protonym:  Corvus erythrorynchus TablePlanchesEnlum. p.38
Taxonomy:  Passeriformes / Corvidae / Urocissa
Taxonomy Code:  rbbmag
Type Locality:  [China]; restricted to Canton by Birckhead (1937, Amer. Mus. Novit., no. 966, p. 13).
Author:  Boddaert
Publish Year:  1783
IUCN Status:  Least Concern

DEFINITIONS

UROCISSA
(Corvidae; Ϯ Red-billed Blue Magpie U. erythrorhyncha) Gr. ουρα oura  tail; genus Cissa Boie, 1826, magpie; "Gen. UROCISSA nov. gen. *) Schweif-Kitta.  Callocitta Gray pt.   487.  1. U. sinensis Nob. — Cuculus sinensis Lin.  Corvus erythrorhynchus Gm. Syst. No. 34. — Caracias melanocephala Lath. — Psilorhinus sinensis Blyth.   ...   488.  2. U. flavirostris Nob. — Psilorhinus flavirostris Blyth. Jour. As. Soc. Bengal. Vol. XV. (1846) pag. 28. No. 5.   ...   *) Gray stellte den Typus der Gattung, den Cuculus sinensis Lin. zu seiner Gattung Callocitta und vereinigte später diese Gattung mit Psilorhinus Rüpp. Typus der Gattung Callicitta ist Bullocki (Wagl) und ist dieselbe nahe verwandt mit Psilorhinus, indem beide zu den Garrulinen gehören. Urocissa gehört indess keineswegs in die Familie der Corvidae, sondern steht sicherlich in naher Verwandtschaft mit Cissa, wie von uns schon früher angedeutet worden ist.  Ausser den beiden aufgeführten unterscheidet Blyth noch 3 Arten oder Abarten:  1. U. occipitalis. — Psilorh. occipitalis Blyth. von Nepal.   2. U. magnirostris. — Psilorh. magnirostris Blyth. von Arracan   ...   3. U. albicapillus. — Psil. albicap. Blyth. von Simla" (Cabanis 1853); "Urocissa Cabanis 1850 [= 1853], Mus. Hein., 1, p. 87. Type, Corvus erythrorhynchus Boddaert.¹  ...  ¹ Cabanis listed two species, Cuculus sinensis Linnaeus and Psilorhinus flavirostris Blyth, and the type was subsequently designated as Cuculus sinensis by Gray (1855, Cat. Gen. Subgen. Birds, p. 63). However, according to Hartert (1921, Vög. pal. Fauna, p. 2027), Cuculus sinensis of Linnaeus is not identifiable and the correct type of Urocissa is "sinensis of authors" [= Corvus erythrorhynchus Boddaert]." (Vaurie in Peters 1962, XV, 240).
Synon. Biophorus, Cissopica.

erythrorhyncha / erythrorhynchos / erythrorhynchum / erythrorhynchus / erythroryncha / erythrorynchos / erythrorynchus
Gr. ερυθρος eruthros red; ῥυγχος rhunkhos bill.
● ex “Crimson-billed Duck” of Latham 1785 (Anas).
● ex “Red-billed Creeper” of Latham 1787 (Dicaeum).
● ex “Saw-billed Pelican” and “Rough-billed Pelican” of Latham 1785 (Pelecanus).
● ex “Red-billed Promerops” of Latham 1787 (syn. Phoeniculus purpureus).
● ex “Red-beaked Toucan” of Edwards 1758, and Latham 1781, and “Tucana cayennensis gutture albo” of Brisson 1760 (syn. Ramphastos tucanus).
● ex “Calao à becque rouge du Sénégal” of Brisson 1760 (Tockus).
● ex “Geay de la Chine à bec rouge” of d’Aubenton 1765-1781, pl. 622, and “Red-billed Jay” of Latham 1781 (Urocissa).

SUBSPECIES

Red-billed Blue-Magpie (brevivexilla)
SCI Name: Urocissa erythroryncha brevivexilla
brevivexilla
L. brevis  short; vexillum  standard, flag  < dim. velum  sail.

Red-billed Blue-Magpie (erythroryncha)
SCI Name: Urocissa erythroryncha erythroryncha
erythrorhyncha / erythrorhynchos / erythrorhynchum / erythrorhynchus / erythroryncha / erythrorynchos / erythrorynchus
Gr. ερυθρος eruthros red; ῥυγχος rhunkhos bill.
● ex “Crimson-billed Duck” of Latham 1785 (Anas).
● ex “Red-billed Creeper” of Latham 1787 (Dicaeum).
● ex “Saw-billed Pelican” and “Rough-billed Pelican” of Latham 1785 (Pelecanus).
● ex “Red-billed Promerops” of Latham 1787 (syn. Phoeniculus purpureus).
● ex “Red-beaked Toucan” of Edwards 1758, and Latham 1781, and “Tucana cayennensis gutture albo” of Brisson 1760 (syn. Ramphastos tucanus).
● ex “Calao à becque rouge du Sénégal” of Brisson 1760 (Tockus).
● ex “Geay de la Chine à bec rouge” of d’Aubenton 1765-1781, pl. 622, and “Red-billed Jay” of Latham 1781 (Urocissa).

Red-billed Blue-Magpie (alticola)
SCI Name: Urocissa erythroryncha alticola
alticola
L. altus  high (i.e. highland, mountain)  < alere  to nourish; -cola  dweller  < colere  to inhabit.
● Erroneous TL. Fife, N.E. Rhodesia, near Nyasaland border (= Isoka, Northern Rhodesia / Zambia); "Cisticola alticola  ...  Not a Cisticola (cf. steeply graduated tail of long narrow feathers; broad-based, fine-pointed first primary; lores coloured with head-top, &c.), but nearer Apalis and allies." (Lynes 1930) (Apalis).

Red-billed Blue-Magpie (occipitalis)
SCI Name: Urocissa erythroryncha occipitalis
occipitalis
Late L. occipitalis  of the back of the head, occipital  < L. occipitium  occiput  < ob  towards, over; caput, capitis  head.
● ex “Azur à Calotte et à Collier Noir” of Levaillant 1805 (syn. Hypothymis azurea).
● ex “Huppard” of Levaillant 1796, pl. 2  < French huppe  crest; Busard  hawk (Lophaetus).

Red-billed Blue-Magpie (magnirostris)
SCI Name: Urocissa erythroryncha magnirostris
magnirostre / magnirostris
L. magnus  great; -rostris  -billed  < rostrum  beak.
● ex “Alouette à Gros Bec” of Levaillant 1806, pl. 193 (Galerida).
● ex “Épervier à gros bec de Cayenne” of d’Aubenton 1765-1781, pl. 464, and “Great-billed Falcon” of Latham 1781 (Rupornis).