ANATOMY OF BIRDS
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
MIGRATIONS OF BIRDS
CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS
LIZARD-TAILED BIRD
AMERICAN TOOTHED-BIRDS
THE OSTRICHES
THE RHEAS
EMEUS AND CASSOWARIES
THE TINAMOUS
THE KIWIS
THE PENGUINS
LOONS AND GREBES
ALBATROSSES & PETRELS
STORK-LIKE BIRDS
GOOSE-LIKE BIRDS
FALCON-LIKE BIRDS
FOWL-LIKE BIRDS
CRANE-LIKE BIRDS
PLOVER-LIKE BIRDS
CUCKOO-LIKE BIRDS
THE ROLLER-LIKE BIRDS
SPARROW-LIKE BIRDS
Birds and Birding's Guide to:
Watching GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF BIRDS
The Neotropical Region
The present Region comprises the whole continent of South America as well as Central America and the West Indies, extending as far north as the southern line of the Holarctic Region, which will be defined later.
Although there are no life forms in common between the two last-mentioned Regions and the present, there is a certain alliance, as was long ago suggested by Professor Huxley, though of quite a different nature from any thus far considered.”South America, that is to say the most important part of the Neotropical Region, retains a greater proportion of the less modified descendants of generalized ornithic types than does any other portion of the globe, the two Regions before mentioned only excepted."—Newton.
In other words, this area appears to have been more or less completely isolated for a very long period of time, and as a result a large proportion of the archaic elements have been retained, albeit in modified form. Among the birds, then, we find a large number of peculiar types, including the orders Rheiformes (Rheas) and Crypturiformes (Tinamous), and some twenty-seven families or subfamilies, as follows: Procnia-tidcB (Swallow-Tanagers), Ccerebida (Honey-Creepers), Zeledoniidce (Wren-Thrushes), Catamblyrhynchidce (Plush-capped Finches), Ptilogonatidm (Silky Flycatchers), Dulida (Palm Chats), Oxyruncida (Sharp-bills), Pipridce (Manakins), Cotingidm (Cotingas), Phytotomidce (Plant-cutters), Dendrocolap-tida (Wood-Hewers), Formicariida (Ant-birds), Pteroptochidce (Tapacolas), Rhamphastidm (Toucans), Bucconidm (Puff-birds), Galbulida (Jacamars), Todida (Todies), Momotidtz (Motmots), Steatomithida (Oil-birds), Cracidce (Curassows), Opisthocomida (Hoactzin), Chionidce (Sheath-bills), Thinoco-ridcR (Seed-snipe), CariamidcB (Cariamas), Aramidce (Courlans), Psophiidce (Trumpeters), Eurypygidce (Sun-bitterns), Palamedeidcs (Screamers).
In addition to the above-mentioned peculiar forms the following families are mainly Neotropical, only relatively few species crossing the line into the Holarctic Region: Icterida (Troupials), Tanagrida (Tanagers), Tyrannida (Tyrant-birds), and Trochilida (Hummingbirds).
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