Melaenornis

The genus Melaenornis was introduced in 1840 by the English zoologist George Gray. It was a replacement name for Melasoma that had been introduced in 1837 by William Swainson with the northern black flycatcher as the type species.^[2] Melasoma was pre-occupied by "Melasoma Dillwyn" that had been introduced in 1831 by James Stephens for a genus of insects.^[3][4] The name Melaenornis combines the Ancient Greek melas, melaina meaning "black" with ornis meaning "bird".^[5]

The genus contains the following seven species:^[6]

More information Image, Common name ...

Image	Common name	Scientific name	Distribution
	Angola slaty flycatcher	Melaenornis brunneus	Angola
	White-eyed slaty flycatcher	Melaenornis fischeri	eastern Afromontane
	Abyssinian slaty flycatcher	Melaenornis chocolatinus	Ethiopian Highlands
	Nimba flycatcher	Melaenornis annamarulae	Western Guinean lowland forests
	Yellow-eyed black flycatcher	Melaenornis ardesiacus	Albertine Rift montane forests
	Northern black flycatcher	Melaenornis edolioides	northern Sub-Saharan Africa
	Southern black flycatcher	Melaenornis pammelaina	southern Sub-Saharan Africa

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This genus formerly included fewer species. The results of a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2010 led to a reorganization of the Old World flycatchers family in which the four species in Bradornis and the single species in Sigelus were merged into Melaenornis.^[6][7] The genus formerly included the pale flycatcher and the chat flycatcher. Based on a phylogenetic study published in 2023, they were moved to the resurrected genus Agricola.^[8][6]