Tockus nasutus epirhinus ( Sundevall, 1850 )

Dean, W. Richard J., Åhlander, Erik & Johansson, Ulf S., 2022, Avian type localities and the type specimens collected by Johan August Wahlberg in southern Africa, Zootaxa 5134 (4), pp. 521-560 : 529

Buceros nasutus var. caffer ( B. epirhinus n. sp.) Sundevall, 1850: 108.

VERBATIM TYPE LOCALITY: “ Caffr. superiore, ad 24° lat. ”.

CURRENT STATUS: Tockus nasutus epirhinus ( Sundevall, 1850) ; Bucerotidae ( Dickinson & Remsen 2013: 283) .

TYPE MATERIAL: Sundevall referred to characters of both male and female in his original description, and according to his acquisition catalogue, he had at least five specimens available at the time. Gyldenstolpe (1926: 83) referred to two specimens, a male and a female, as types, so no lectotype was designated and the type series consists of syntypes. The five syntypes are: NRM 569870 [7254], an adult female collected 20 November 1841 near Hartebeespoort; NRM 569871 [7250], an adult male collected 28 November 1841 near Hartebeespoort ; NRM 90132600 [7253], a juvenile female collected 20 June 1844 at Leroma , near Pilanesberg ; RMNH. AVES.197367 [7251], a male collected 26 Nov 1841 near Hartebeespoort , sent on exchange to Leiden in 1850; and a male [7252], collected 20 November 1841 near Hartebeesport , and sent on exchange to Berlin in 1853. The latter was not found in the ZMB database but may possibly be the study skin [Mus. no. 2926] without data in the ZMB collection, with the collector erroneously given as “Sundevall” .

VERIFIED TYPE LOCALITY: Hartebeespoort , Gauteng and Pilanesberg (Leroma), North West Province.

COMMENTS: See Gyldenstolpe (1926: 83, 115) for discussion of the name. The type locality, Magalies Berg (which is unjustified)proposed by Gyldenstolpe needs correction, and should be Hartebeespoort. On p. 68 of the translation of Wahlberg’s journal ( Craig & Hummel 1994), he noted that on 15 November 1841 he travelled to the Crocodile River and from there past “Makhalies Berg’s Poort” (= Hartebeespoort) to camp at an unnamed river, moving closer to the river the next day (see Figure 3 ). His meeting with Burke and Zeyher (see introduction) on 15 November (according to Wahlberg’s journal) or 17 November (according to Burke’s journal) suggests that his camp was close to Hartebeespoort. Wahlberg made no further mention of travel until 8 January 1842, so it can be assumed that he camped in more or less the same place from 15 November to 5 January.

Figures

FIGURE 3. Wahlberg’s camps and collecting sites (red dots) in the North West Province 1842–1844.