Dear All,

The latest IOC World Checklist has just come out and today I perused
it. They have 28 more species of Kenyan forms that we are currently
not recognising, (and there are others that they have not treated).
Compared to our latest checklist we are already at variance as
follows……

They still recognise

Common and Somali Ostrich
Common and Rock Kestrel
Blue and Green Malkohas
Black-shouldered and Fiery-necked Nightjar
Eurasian and African Hoopoe
African Grey and Eastern Grey Woodpeckers
Eastern and Western Black-headed Batis
Ethiopian, Tropical, Somali and East Coast Boubou
Red-tailed and Isabelline Shrike
Athi and Somali Short-toed Lark
Common and Dodson's Bulbul
Cabanis"s and Placid Greenbul
Lazy and Rock-loving Cisticola
(Wailing) and Lyne's Cisticola
(Black-faced) and Banded Prinia
Bar-throated and Taita Apalis
Green-backed and Grey-backed Camaroptera
Montane, Kikuyu and Taita White-eye
Olive and Taita Thrush
(European) and African Stonechat
Eastern and Usambara Double-collared Sunbird
Northern Grey-headed, Parrot-billed, Swainson's and Swahili Sparrow
African and Black-chinned Quailfinch
Black-and-White and Red-backed Mannikin
(Eastern) and Western Yellow Wagtail
African or Grassland as we more sensibly call it, and Jackson's Pipit
(Cape) and Yellow-crowned Canary
African, Southern and (Western) Citril
(Streak-headed) and West African Seedeater

Only the birds in brackets have not been found in our region.

Although on the latest Kenya Checklist many of these forms are not
recognised, as there is still a questionable possibility of the forms
being specific identities, we should still be vigilant enough to
record the forms of the birds we see instead of accepting a blanket
lumping and subsequently a loss of data, loss of protection for birds
now considered races of widespread forms, and on top of all this a
loss of appreciation for their existence.

Best to all
Brian