Mirafra intercedens Reichenow, 1895: 96

Frahnert, Sylke, Turner, Donald A. & Bracker, Cordula, 2023, Type specimens and type localities of birds (Aves) collected by Gustav Adolf Fischer (1848 - 1886) in East Africa, Zootaxa 5334 (1), pp. 1-84 : 31

Mirafra intercedens Reichenow, 1895: 96 .

Now: Calendulauda alopex intercedens ( Reichenow, 1895) . See White (1961: 24); but see also Mayr & Greenway (1960: 16).

Holotype: ZMB 49.232 (Fischer no. 13), skin, male, collected at Loeru, 05.09.1885.

Type locality: “ Loeru (Massailand)” [ Loeru , Dodoma Region, Tanzania], from the original description and locality of the holotype .

Remarks: In the original description no type was chosen and no collecting number was given. However, Reichenow (1895) refers to Mirafra sabota (Smith, A.) in Reichenow (1887: 74) and a specimen from the locality “Loeru” of the collector Fischer. As ZMB 49.232 (Fischer no. 13) is the only Fischer specimen of this species from Loeru, it is the holotype for this species.

The East African population of intercedens has long been placed within africanoides (Smith, A.) , contra Ryan et al. (2004) and Hockey et al. (2005) who restrict africanoides to southern Africa, and place East African birds within the smaller and more richly colored Calendulauda alopex (Sharpe, RB) of Somaliland and the Ogaden region, as do both del Hoyo & Collar (2016) and Gill et al. (2023). However as Alström et al. (2013) had no molecular data to support a sister group relationship between Calendulauda alopex intercedens and C. africanoides austinrobertsi (White, C.M.N.), treatment of intercedens within africanoides was maintained by Dickinson & Christidis (2014).