Spotted Jewel-babbler

SCI Name:  Ptilorrhoa leucosticta
Protonym:  Eupetes leucostictus Proc.Zool.Soc.London(1873) (1873), Pt3 p.690 pl.52
Taxonomy:  Passeriformes / Cinclosomatidae / Ptilorrhoa
Taxonomy Code:  spjbab1
Type Locality:  Hatam, Arfak Mountains, New Guinea.
Author:  Sclater, PL
Publish Year:  1874
IUCN Status:  Least Concern

DEFINITIONS

PTILORRHOA
(Cinclosomatidae; Ϯ Blue Jewel-babbler P. caerulescens) Gr. πτιλον ptilon  feather; ορρος orrhos  rump; "For many years an assemblage of Papuan Timeliidae has been united generically with Eupetes (type Eupetes macrocercus Temminck) of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. A preliminary survey of the Timeliidae in the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy shows that this grouping is not correct, but that the Papuan birds are generically separable from Eupetes and that there is no name available. I therefore propose  Ptilorrhoa genus novum   TYPE, Eupetes caerulescens Temminck.   DIAGNOSIS.—Related to Eupetes but bill relatively much shorter, more decurved terminally, little wider than high; position of nostril more basal, the distance from its anterior edge to tip of culmen equal to or less than the distance from its anterior edge to the gape; tail slightly graduated, rectrices broad and obtuse; tarsus less than twice as long as middle toe without claw; entire feathering of head normal (not velvety); under tail-coverts normal; no bare skin about eye; no naked patches on sides of neck.   ...  The most noticeable point of similarity in the two genera is the extraordinary thick mat of feathers covering the lower back and rump.  The forms of Ptilorrhoa are:—  Ptilorrhoa caerulescens  ...  Ptilorrhoa castanotus  ...  Ptilorrhoa leucostictus" (J. L. Peters 1940).
Synon. Mollitor.

leucosticta
Gr. λευκοστικτος leukostiktos  white-speckled, white-spotted  < λευκος leukos  white; στικτος stiktos  spotted  < στιζω stizō  to tattoo.

SUBSPECIES

Spotted Jewel-babbler (leucosticta)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta leucosticta
leucosticta
Gr. λευκοστικτος leukostiktos  white-speckled, white-spotted  < λευκος leukos  white; στικτος stiktos  spotted  < στιζω stizō  to tattoo.

Spotted Jewel-babbler (mayri)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta mayri
mayri
Dr Ernst Walter Mayr (1904-2005) German evolutionary biologist, ornithologist, systematist (syn. Aerodramus hirundinaceus, subsp. Amblyornis macgregoriae, subsp. Athene brama, syn. Burhinus oedicnemus indicus, subsp. Cecropis daurica, subsp. Cincloramphus macrurus, syn. Cinclosoma castanotum, subsp. Culicicapa helianthea, subsp. Ficedula westermanni, subsp. Lewinia pectoralis, subsp. Lonchura spectabilis, subsp. Megalaima virens, syn. Mixornis gularis rubicapilla, subsp. Mulleripicus funebris, syn. Phonygammus keraudrenii purpureoviolaceus, syn. Pogoniulus chrysoconus, Ptiloprora, subsp. Ptilorrhoa leucosticta, Rallicula, syn. Rhinortha chlorophaea, subsp. Roraimia adusta, subsp. Sarcophanops steerii, subsp. Tregellasia leucops, subsp. Trugon terrestris, subsp. Turnix maculosus, subsp. Zapornia pusilla).

Spotted Jewel-babbler (centralis)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta centralis
centralis
L. centralis, centrale  central, in the middle  < centrum  middle point, centre  < Gr. κεντρον kentron  sharp point, stationary point of a pair of compasses.  A good proportion of the names here refer to forms collected in "Central Africa," i.e. the eastern Congo and the Rift Valley lakes (e.g. subsp. Bradypterus baboecala, subsp. Chlorocichla flaviventris, subsp. Malimbus rubricollis, subsp. Sarothrura pulchra, subsp. Turdus pelios).  Some further examples follow.
• "Dieselbe steht in Bezug auf Grösse zwischen cardinalis und massaicus in der Mitte." (Neumann 1900) (subsp. Dendropicos fuscescens).  
• "Distribution. Endemic to Peru on east Andean slope from Río Huallaga through Pasco to Junín west of the Río Ene and north of the Río Mantaro  ...  The scientific name reflects the range of this species near the geographic center of Peru." (Hosner et al. in M. Isler et al. 2020) (Grallaria).
• "Intermediate in size between N. f. flavicollis (Vieill.) and N. f. melanoxantha (Lcht.)" (Hellmayr 1907) (subsp. Hemithraupis flavicollis).
• "These birds are intermediate between N. famosa and N. cupreonitens, and resemble birds labelled by Neumann in the Tring Museum with the MS. name Nectarinia famosa centralis" (van Someren 1916) (subsp. Nectarinia famosa).
• "RANGE. —Eastern part of the central Solomon Islands (Kulambangra, New Georgia, Vangunu, and Gatukai)." (Mayr 1932) (subsp. Pachycephala pectoralis).
• "zentralbrasilianischen Hochlandes (Matto-grosso.  S. Goyaz.  N.-São Paulo.  W.-Minas Geraës)" (Hellmayr 1920) (subsp. Ramphocelus carbo).
• "the Central American form is named CICCABA VIRGATA CENTRALIS, subsp. nov.  ...  Chivela, Oaxaca, Mexico." (Griscom 1929) (subsp. Strix virgata).
• "Tang- (Dang-) la Range, Central Tibet, Tang-la Pass" (Sushkin 1926) (subsp. Tetraogallus tibetanus).               

Spotted Jewel-babbler (sibilans)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta sibilans
sibilans
L. sibilans, sibilantis  hissing, whistling  < sibilare  to whistle  < sibilus  hissing.

Spotted Jewel-babbler (menawa)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta menawa
menawa
Mt. Menawa, Bewani Mts., Sepik District, Papua New Guinea.

Spotted Jewel-babbler (amabilis)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta amabilis
amabile / amabilis
L. amabilis  amiable, lovable  < amare  to love.

Spotted Jewel-babbler (loriae)
SCI Name: Ptilorrhoa leucosticta loriae
loriae
Dr Lamberto Loria (1855-1913) Italian ethnologist, explorer, collector in New Guinea (syn. Aegotheles wallacii, syn. Casuarius bennetti, Cnemophilus (cf. “presumably in honour of the wife of the discoverer Dr Lamberto Loria” (Frith & Beehler 1998)), subsp. Erythropitta macklotii, subsp. Ptilorrhoa leucosticta).