Emberizidae

Emberizidae is a large family of passerine birds, which are typically known as buntings in the Old World and American sparrows in the New World. They are seed-eating birds with a finch-like bill.

These birds are not closely related to the (Old World) sparrows, the family Passeridae. The family also includes the North American birds known as juncos and towhees.

The Emberizidae family probably originated in South America and spread first into North America before crossing into eastern Asia and continuing to move west. This explains the comparative paucity of emberizid species in Europe and Africa when compared to the Americas.

Like wih several other passerine families, this family's taxonomy is in a state of flux. Many genera in South and Central America are more closely related to tanager clades,Burns K.J; Hackett S.J. & Klein N.K. 2002. Phylogenetic relationships and morphological diversity in Darwin's finches and their relatives. Evolution 56 (6) 1240-1252Lougheed S.C. et al 2000. A molecular phylogeny of warbling-finches (Poospiza): paraphyly in a Neotropical emberizid genus. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 17: 367-378Burns K.J; Hackett S.J. &  Klein  N.K. 2003. Phylogenetic relationships of Neotropical honeycreepers and the evolution of feeding morphology. J. Avian Biology 34: 360-370. and at least one tanager genus (Chlorospingus) may belong here in the Emberizidae.Yuri T. &  Mindell D.P. 2002. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of Fringillidae, New World nine-primaried oscines (Aves: Passeriformes). Mol. Phylogen. Evol. 23: 229-243

 References 

Category:Passeri