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Podoces

Cladus: Eukaryota
Supergroup: Opisthokonta
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Classis: Aves
Subclassis: Carinatae
Infraclassis: Neornithes
Parvclassis: Neognathae
Ordo: Passeriformes
Subordo: Passeri
Parvordo: Corvida
Superfamilia: Corvoidea
Familia: Corvidae
Genus: Podoces
Species: P. biddulphi - P. hendersoni - P. panderi - P. pleskei

Name

Podoces Fischer von Waldheim, 1821

Vernacular name

Reference

Lettre adressée au nom de la Société imperiale des naturalistes de Moscou ... p.6

The ground jays or ground choughs belong to a distinct group of the passerine order of birds in the genus Podoces of the crow family Corvidae. They inhabit high altitude semi-desert areas from central Asia to Mongolia.

Ground jays show adaptations to ground living such as long, strong legs adapted to fast running and the ability to leap and bound onto boulders and rocks with great agility. Their long, curved thick bills are adapted for digging and probing.

While capable of flight (which they do infrequently and relatively weakly), they prefer running, and will readily perch on trees and bushes also.
Species list

* Henderson's Ground Jay (Podoces hendersoni)
* Biddulph's Ground Jay (Podoces biddulphi)
* Persian Ground Jay (Podoces pleskei)
* Pander's Ground Jay (Podoces panderi)

Hume's Ground Tit (Pseudopodoces humilis), previously Hume's Ground Jay, has changed its placement within the Passeriformes recently because of molecular and osteological testing. It has now been placed into the Paridae.

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Source: Wikipedia, Wikispecies: All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License