Saxicola syenitica

Shirihai, Hadoram, Schweizer, Manuel, Kirwan, Guy M. & Svensson, Lars, 2014, Saxicola syenitica Heuglin, 1869 (Aves: Passeriformes: Muscicapidae), an overlooked taxon of Oenanthe?, Zootaxa 3785 (1), pp. 1-24 : 3-4

The syenitica type: locality, collecting date, age and sex

According to Heuglin (1869a, b), he collected the single male of Saxicola syenitica (NMW 42.231) in June 1852 at El Kab, Oberegypten (upper Egypt). Schifter (1991) considered the type locality “El Kab” to lie in modern-day Sudan at 19°17’N, 32°44’E, using the coordinates for “El Kab” listed in the Times Atlas (H.-M. Berg in litt. 2013). However, we have found two other localities named El Kab: the first a now-famous archaeological site (25°07’N, 32°47’E) in upper Egypt, on the east bank of the Nile at the mouth of Wadi Hillal, c. 80 km south of Luxor; the other is Jebel El Kab, in northern Sudan (19°03’N, 30°05’E). Additionally, the name syenitica could refer to ‘Syene’, an ancient/alternative name for modern-day Aswan, Egypt (24°05’N, 32°53’E), which is c. 100 km south of the archaeological site El Kab mentioned above ( Fig. 1 ).

Paintings by Heuglin with date and location held at the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart (SMNS) indicate Heuglin’s itinerary in summer 1852. He was apparently continuously travelling south along the Nile. On 2 June 1852, he was in the region of Assyut (Siut), Egypt (27°10’51”N, 31°11’1”E), on the west bank of the Nile c. 375 km south of Cairo. Another painting dated 5 June 1852 is from Dandarah (Dendera), Egypt (26°10’5”N, 32°39’27”E), further south on the banks of the Nile, c. 118 km north of the archaeological site of El Kab. On 29 June 1852, Heuglin was in Qasr Ibrim (Cheik Ibrim) (22°38’N, 31°59’E), Egypt, also on the Nile, about 30 km north of Abu Simbel and 275 km south of the archaeological site El Kab. Chronologically, the next available painting is from 28 July 1852 from Dongola (Dongola nova), Sudan (19°10’N, 30°29’E), close to Jebel El Kab.

If the syenitica type was indeed collected in June, the archaeological site is the most likely type locality. This would also agree with the region “Oberegypten” (upper Egypt) mentioned in the type description, although this term might have been used differently during the mid-19th century. However, another “El Kab” was known to Heuglin (1869b), who wrote: „Die Nordgrenze der subtropischen Zone fällt mit derjenigen der periodischen Sommerregen zusammen. Nach meinen Beobachtungen erstrecken sich die letzteren von der Oasis von El Kab nordwärts bis Breitenparallel von Hafir (20.° N. Br.),…” (The northern boundary of the subtropical zone coincides with that of periodical summer rains. After my observations, the latter extend from the oasis of El Kab to the north parallel to the latitude of Hafir (20° N),…). Hence, the El Kab concerned here would fit with “Jebel El Kab” or the “El Kab” of Schifter (1991) mentioned above. However, as Heuglin was seemingly still much further north by the end of June, we cannot conclusively decide on which “El Kab” refers to the type locality.

The syenitica type is a first-summer bird with retained juvenile remiges and primary-coverts. The condition of its wing feathers and its overall abraded plumage confirm that the specimen was collected during or at the end of the breeding season, but before the post-breeding moult. Regarding the specimen’s sex, we believe that, as labelled, the type of syenitica is a male, because, despite being worn, its dark body feathers are purer black (less brownish), with more sheen and more prominent white edges to the bases of the remiges (Shirihai & Svensson in prep.) than is typical of females.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Map of southern Egypt and northern Sudan showing the locations of the three potential type localities of syenitica named El Kab. Moreover, the locations painted by Heuglin are also shown, indicating his itinerary in summer 1852.