Gypaetinae
Subfamily of birds
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Gypaetinae is one of two subfamilies of Old World vultures the other being the Aegypiinae. This subfamily is considered a sister group to Perninae.[1] They are presently found throughout much of Africa, Asia, and southern Europe, hence being considered "Old World" vultures, but as recently as the Late Pleistocene, they were also present in North America.[2]
| Gypaetinae | |
|---|---|
| |
| Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Accipitriformes |
| Family: | Accipitridae |
| Subfamily: | Gypaetinae |
| Genera | |
|
See text. | |
Species
Extant genera
| Subfamily | Genus | Common and binomial names | Image | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gypaetinae | Gypaetus Storr, 1784 | Bearded vulture Gypaetus barbatus |
|
High mountains in southern Europe, the Caucasus, Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and Tibet |
| †Gypaetus georgii | Fossil record from the late Miocene, Spain[3] | |||
| Gypohierax Rüppell, 1836 | Palm-nut vulture Gypohierax angolensis |
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Forest and savannah across sub-Saharan Africa | |
| Neophron Savigny, 1809 | Egyptian vulture Neophron percnopterus |
 |
Southwestern Europe and northern Africa to India | |
| †Neophron lolis | Fossil record from the late Miocene, Spain[3] |
Fossil genera
Genera known only from fossils include:[2]
| Subfamily | Genus | Common and binomial names | Image | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gypaetinae | †Anchigyps | †Anchigyps voorhiesi | Late Miocene to early Pliocene of North America | |
| †Arikarornis | †Arikarornis macdonaldi | Early Miocene of North America | ||
| †Mioneophron | †Mioneophron longirostris | Late Miocene of China | ||
| †Neophrontops | †Neophrontops americanus |  |
Miocene to Late Pleistocene of North America | |
| †Neophrontops dakotensis | ||||
| †Neophrontops slaughteri | ||||
| †Neophrontops vallecitoensis | ||||
| †Neophrontops vetustus | ||||
| †Neogyps
(sometimes placed in the Aegypiinae) |
†Neogyps errans |  |
Late Pleistocene of North America | |
| †Palaeoborus
(sometimes placed in the Aegypiinae) |
†Palaeoborus howardae | Miocene of North America | ||
| †Palaeoborus rosatus | ||||
| †Palaeoborus umbrosus |
Taxonomy and systematics
The three members of Gypaetinae, together with four other genera, are collectively basal to the Perninae sensu stricto (Aviceda clade plus Pernis clade). Those four are: Polyboroides typus (African harrier hawk), Eutriorchis astur (Madagascar serpent eagle), Chondrohierax and Leptodon .[1]
The new-world genera Chondrohierax (hook-billed kite and Cuban kite) and Leptodon (gray-headed kite and white-collared kite) likely form a clade within the larger group. The placement of Polyboroides and Eutriorchis has been problematic.
Within the Accipitridae, the Elaninae diverged earliest, then this clade – consisting of Polyboroides, Gypaetinae, Eutriorchis, Chondrohierax, Leptodon, and Perninae – is sister to the remaining accipitrids.[1]