- Tympanuchus
Taxobox
name = "Tympanuchus"
image_width = 200px
image_caption = Male Lesser Prairie-chicken ("T. pallidicinctus")
regnum =Animal ia
phylum = Chordata
classis =Aves
ordo =Galliformes
familia =Phasianidae
subfamilia = Tetraoninae
genus = " Tympanuchus "
genus_authority = Gloger,1841
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = "Tympanuchus cupido "
"Tympanuchus pallidicinctus "
"Tympanuchus phasianellus "
synonyms = "Pedioecetes" "Tympanuchus" is a small genus of birds in thegrouse family. It contains three species:*
Sharp-tailed Grouse , "Tympanuchus phasianellus"
*Greater Prairie-chicken , "Tympanuchus cupido"
*Lesser Prairie-chicken , "Tympanuchus pallidicinctus"All three are among the smaller grouse, from 40 to 43 cm (16 to 17 in) in length. They are found in
North America in different types ofprairie s. In courtship display on leks, males make hooting sounds and dance with the head extended straight forward, the tail up, and colorful neck sacks inflated (shown in the photograph at upper right). "Tympanuchus" comes fromAncient Greek roots and means "holding a drum"; it refers to the membranous neck sacks and the drum-like call of the Greater Prairie-chicken.The two prairie chickens are particularly closely related and look extremely similar.
The extinct
Heath Hen of the American east coast, usually considered a subspecies of the Greater Prairie-Chicken, has been considered a separate species.References
*
* Peterson, Alan P. (Editor). 1999. [http://www.zoonomen.net "Zoological Nomenclature Resource" (Zoonomen)] . Accessed 2007-07-29.
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