Lyrurus Explained

Lyrurus is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily. They are known as black grouse because the male's plumage of both species is colored black as its base colour.

Taxonomy

The genus Lyrurus was introduced in 1832 by the English naturalist William John Swainson with the black grouse as the type species.^[1] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek lura meaning "lyre" with -ouros meaning "-tailed".^[2]

Species

The genus contains two species:^[3]

Notes and References

1. Book: Swainson . William John . William John Swainson . Richardson . J. . John Richardson (naturalist) . 1831 . Fauna Boreali-Americana, or, The Zoology of the Northern Parts of British America . Part 2. The Birds . J. Murray . London . 497 . The title page bears the year 1831 but the volume was no published until 1832.
2. Book: Jobling, James A. . 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm . London . 978-1-4081-2501-4 . 233 .
3. Web site: Gill . Frank . Frank Gill (ornithologist) . Donsker . David . Rasmussen . Pamela . Pamela Rasmussen . July 2021 . Pheasants, partridges, francolins . IOC World Bird List Version 11.2 . International Ornithologists' Union . 23 August 2021 .