Solitaire (bird) explained
The solitaires are medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the genera Myadestes, Cichlopsis and Entomodestes of the thrush family Turdidae.
Taxonomy
Although all three genera of solitaires are morphologically similar, genetic studies have indicated that they are not particularly closely related. The genus Myadestes is in the basal clade of the family Turdidae, along with the genera Sialia (the bluebirds) and Neocossyphus (African ant-thrushes).
Species list
Thrushes in three genera are called "solitaires":
- Genus Myadestes 12 species, including 1 now extinct, found in Hawaii, the Americas and the Caribbean
- Ōmao, Myadestes obscurus
- kāmao, Myadestes myadestinus
- Olomao, Myadestes lanaiensis
- Puaiohi, Myadestes palmeri
- Townsend's solitaire, Myadestes townsendi
- Brown-backed solitaire, Myadestes occidentalis
- Cuban solitaire, Myadestes elisabeth
- Rufous-throated solitaire, Myadestes genibarbis
- Black-faced solitaire, Myadestes melanops
- Varied solitaire, Myadestes coloratus
- Andean solitaire, Myadestes ralloides
- Slate-colored solitaire, Myadestes unicolor
- Genus Cichlopsis: 1 species, found to South America
- Genus Entomodestes: 2 species, found in South America
