MORPHOLOGICAL PROOF WAS WAY AHEAD OF GENETIC EVIDENCE!

RECENT PAPER SHOWING THAT THE WESTERN SQUARE-TAILED DRONGO
IS NOT THE SAME SPECIES AS THE COASTAL SQUARE-TAILED DRONGO, AND
DICRURUS SHARPEI IS A NEW SPECIES.

This is an interesting paper that splits off Sharpe’s Drongo though it
is not called that in the Paper, it is what I have called it for the
past twenty years or more, and in leading tours have taken pains to
point out that if the clients have seen the Square-tailed Drongo, then
they must put sharpei in the bank because it certainly is something
different and specific identity will prevail…. eventually.
So Kenya gets another species to its National List. On the East
African Bird App released way back in 2012, I made sure that the
recordings of sharpie were there to be heard, and appreciate just how
different they were from Square-tailed Drongo.

In early 2013, I sent this to Rauri Bowie an author of the latest paper....

......We then moved on to some field work he was doing on Square-tailed
Drongo. I wrote to him ...."Square-tailed Drongo, now there's another issue.
There is another cryptic species involved here. We have both in Kenya.
Your Tz bird does not occur anywhere in the ideal habitat in south or central
coastal Kenya, but pops up in Witu Forest in the Tana, and the Tana
River inland as far as Garissa. In Kakamega we have sharpei. It is
considered a race of Square-tailed Drongo, and it has a squared
slightly notched tail and must be the reason for lumping, but any
other similarity really ends there. It is still common in Kakamega,
but if you read Birds of Africa you will find that the bird is so
patchy. It completely misses Uganda apart from being mentioned in West
Nile, but I don't know anyone who has ever seen it there, and reoccurs
in DRC. All that habitat for a small drongo, and there just isn't one!
But that wasn't your question. I have a little Square-tailed Drongo (calls)
that you are most welcome to, but not much I am afraid. Do you think
they are a flock leader, or just following Helmet-Shrikes but making a
bigger and noisier show about it?"
...wrote back and said you had been working on this group, and I
should let you know about my feelings for the two forms. I am sure
that there would be sharpei specimens in Nairobi Museum that they
could help you with, if you include this form in your study (or maybe
you already have).
Best for now
Brian

PS other recent wins for Morphology before Genetics have been Little
Rush and Southern Rush Warblers, but note that the Little Rush will
apply to baboecala from Kenya borders southwards, and our familiar
widespread bird takes on the name Highland Rush Warbler which makes
good sense to me (I’ll start using it tomorrow!).

Manda Boubou came to light only because of Morphological data and was
later backed by genetic evidence.

There are more, but there is much still to come!