So, to be exact, then,* if CBC uses Purple Swamphen, then it is following
the AOS Checklist,* as opposed to the ABA Checklist, which lists it as
Gray-headed (Purple) Swamphen.
Again, as the ABA Checklist revises its checklist annually right AFTER the
AOS published theirs for the year, we should really abide by the names in
the AOS Checklist. The ABA Checklist is best used for "rules for counting"
etc, as it is the AOS committee members who are the taxonomists (mostly
professionals), whereas the ABA committee is mainly expert/experienced
birders.
The real deal now is to determine, if possible at all, its provenance. * Is
there evidence that it escaped a local waterfowl or bird dealer or other
captive situation here in NC, for example?*. We did have very strong storms
on Sunday, with scattered tornadoes, which could have caused
bird facilities to fail and allow birds to escape. Of course, strong winds
on Saturday and Sunday -- from the remnants of Hurricane Isaias -- could
have brought the bird from Florida to NC. We might never know, but keep
this on the table in upcoming discussions.
Harry LeGrand
On Tue, Oct 13, 2026 at 1:56 PM Kent Fiala <carolinabirds...> wrote:
> If you upload photos of the Gray-headed Swamphen to the Carolina Bird
> Club photo gallery, please identify it as Purple Swamphen, not Gray-headed.
>
> Since the 1880s the American Ornithologists' Union (now reconstituted as
> American Ornithological Society) has been the authority for taxonomy of
> North American birds. From the early days of Carolina Bird Club up into
> the early years of this century, everyone in North America accepted
> their taxonomy. In this century, eBird has emerged using the Clements
> taxonomy, which is worldwide rather than just for North America. Many
> people use eBird so they are more familiar with Clements/eBird taxonomy
> than with AOS. This is one of a few unfortunate cases where
> Clements/eBird uses a different name than AOS uses.
>
> I have asked the chairs of both the NC and SC Bird Records Committees to
> make a formal decision on whether we continue the long tradition of
> using the AOS taxonomy, or to switch to Clements. Neither committee has
> responded to me, so on the CBC website I continued using AOS as always
> rather than make a big change on my own, and I've suggested to Jeff that
> he do so as well. Thus, on the CBC website this species is known by its
> AOS name, Purple Swamphen, and not the Clements name Gray-headed
> Swamphen. By the way, the reason for the difference is that worldwide,
> Clements splits the former Purple Swamphen into multiple species, while
> AOS retains them all as one species.
>
> I believe that the annual taxonomic update from AOS is expected this
> month, so it will be interesting to see if they make any further move
> toward unification.
>
> --
> Kent Fiala
>
>
