Lesson plan
Passerae
The "Passerae" were a proposed "parvclass" of birds in the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy. This taxon is a variation on the theme of "near passerines", birds that were – and often still are – believed to be close relatives of the passerines (perching birds, which include the songbirds). This proposed taxon was roundly rejected by subsequent cladistic analyses. According to Sibley and Ahlquist, they include the following superorders and orders: * Superorder Cuculimorphae ** Order Cuculiformes * Superorder Psittacimorphae ** Order Psittaciformes * Superorder Apodimorphae ** Order Apodiformes ** Order Trochiliformes * Superorder Strigimorphae ** Order Musophagiformes ** Order Strigiformes * Superorder Passerimorphae ** Order Columbiformes ** Order Gruiformes ** Order Ciconiiformes ** Order Passeriformes Notable orders traditionally considered "near passerines" but not placed in the Passerae of the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy are Coliiformes, Coraciiformes, Piciformes and Trogoniformes (see below for why this is significant). While the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy certainly represents a monumental endeavour and has some strong points (namely the recognition of the Galloanserae), basically everything about this "parvclass" is today regarded as utter fiction, brought about by the methodological and analytical problems of the phenetic DNA–DNA hybridization analysis.…
Article summary
The "Passerae" were a proposed "parvclass" of birds in the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy. This taxon is a variation on the theme of "near passerines", birds that were – and often still are – believed to be close relatives of the passerines (perching birds, which include the songbirds). This proposed taxon was roundly rejected by subsequent cladistic analyses. According to Sibley and Ahlquist, they include the following superorders and orders: * Superorder Cuculimorphae ** Order Cuculiformes * Superorder Psittacimorphae ** Order Psittaciformes * Superorder Apodimorphae ** Order Apodiformes ** Order Trochiliformes * Superorder Strigimorphae ** Order Musophagiformes ** Order Strigiformes * Superorder Passerimorphae ** Order Columbiformes ** Order Gruiformes ** Order Ciconiiformes ** Order Passeriformes Notable orders traditionally considered "near passerines" but not placed in the Passerae of the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy are Coliiformes, Coraciiformes, Piciformes and Trogoniformes (see below for why this is significant). While the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy certainly represents a monumental endeavour and has some strong points (namely the recognition of the Galloanserae), basically everything about this "parvclass" is today regarded as utter fiction, brought about by the methodological and analytical problems of the phenetic DNA–DNA hybridization analysis.…
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