Olive-headed greenbul explained

The olive-headed greenbul (Arizelocichla striifacies) is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is found in east Africa.

Taxonomy

The olive-headed greenbul was formally described in 1895 by the German ornithologists Anton Reichenow and Oscar Neumann under the binomial name Xenocichla striifacies.^{[1] [2]} The specific epithet combines the Latin stria meaning "furrow" of "striation" with facies meaning "countenance" or "appearance".^[3] This species is now one of 11 greenbuls placed in the genus Arizelocichla that was introduced in 1905 by the American ornithologist Harry C. Oberholser.^[4]

Two subspecies are recognised:^[4]

• A. s. striifacies (Reichenow & Neumann, 1895) – southeast Kenya to southwest Tanzania (Udzungwas)
• A. s. olivaceiceps (Shelley, 1896) – southwest Tanzania (Rungwe), Malawi and northwest Mozambique

The two subspecies were formerly sometimes treated as separate species with the English name "stripe-faced greenbul" used for the nominate subspecies and "olive-headed greenbul" for A. s. olivaceiceps. ^[4]

Notes and References

1. Reichenow . Anton . Anton Reichenow . Neumann . Oscar . Oscar Neumann . 1895 . Diagnosen neuer, von Oskar Neumann in Ost- und Central -Afrika entdeckter Yogelarten . Ornithologische Monatsberichte . 3 . 5 . 73-76 [74] . German .
2. Book: Mayr . Ernst . Ernst Mayr . Greenway . James C. Jr . 1960 . Check-List of Birds of the World . 9 . Museum of Comparative Zoology . Cambridge, Massachusetts . 258 .
3. Web site: Jobling . James A. . striifacies . The Key to Scientific Names . Cornell Lab of Ornithology . 5 September 2024 .
4. Web site: Gill . Frank . Frank Gill (ornithologist) . Donsker . David . Rasmussen . Pamela . Pamela C. Rasmussen . August 2024 . Bulbuls . IOC World Bird List Version 14.2 . International Ornithologists' Union . 5 September 2024.