Batis minor nyansae Neumann, 1907a: 354

Frahnert, Sylke, Louette, Michel & Eckhoff, Pascal, 2021, Type specimens of birds of the genus Batis (Aves: Platysteiridae) at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, Zootaxa 5052 (2), pp. 249-260 : 257-258

Batis minor nyansae Neumann, 1907a: 354

Now: Batis erlangeri erlangeri Neumann, 1907a . See Mayr et al. (1986: 384).

Holotype: ZMB 34025, skin, female, collected by O. Neumann at “Kwa Mtessa in Uganda ”, 14.09.1894.

Paratype: ZMB 34026, skin, male, collected by O. Neumann at “Kwa Raschuonjo in Kavirondo”, 06.03.1894 . Paratype (missing or AMNH Birds SKIN-649259): male, collected by W. J. Ansorge at Kimbugu in Toro .

Paratype: AMNH Birds SKIN-649266, male, collected by W. J. Ansorge at Fadjao in Unjoro, 14.07.1897. http://portal.vertnet . org/o/amnh/birds?id=skin-649266 (10.06.2020).

Paratype: AMNH Birds SKIN-649285, female, collected by Emin Pasha (collector not given in VERTNET) at Wakkala, 25.04.[1881 (Robert J. Dowsett, pers. comm.)], http://portal.vertnet.org/o/amnh/birds?id=skin-649285 (10.06.2020).

Type locality: “Nord- und Ost-Küste des Victoria Nyansa, Albert Nyansa und oberer Weisser Nil” [north and east coast of the Lake Victoria, Lake Albert and the upper White Nile)], ascertained as “Kwa Mtessa in Uganda ” [Kwa Mtessa, West Mengo District, Uganda] (see Mayr et al. 1986).

Remarks: In the description of Batis minor nyansae Neumann, 1907a , the holotype (“Typus”) chosen was specimen ZMB 34025, collected by Oscar Neumann at “Kwa Mtessa in Uganda ”. The collecting date is given as 14.09. on the museum label. The date 14.11. in the description seems to be wrong ( Pachyprora senegalensis, Neumann 1900: 256 ). Neumann (1907a) listed 5 further specimens in the collection in Berlin and Tring (Rothschilds private collection) as additional material he studied. All these specimens (characterized by their collecting data) are regarded as paratypes. The specimens that were in Tring in 1907 were moved to the AMNH as part of the sale of Rothschild’s bird collection. AMNH Birds SKIN-649266 and AMNH Birds SKIN-649285 have the exact same collecting information as given in Neumann (1907a). However, AMNH Birds SKIN-649266 is given as male (see above), whereas in the description ( Neumann, 1907a) this specimen is mentioned as female. AMNH Birds SKIN- 649259 (male, collected at Mahaji, (Mahagi Port), western shore of Lake Albert by Ansorge, on 16.08.1897) could not be identified with certainty as the paratype mentioned by Neumann (1907a). Neumann (1900: 256) gives a wrong inventory number for ZMB 35026 (35025). In the same publication Neumann mentions a third specimen for Pachyprora senegalensis (ZMB 35024) that was not mentioned in the type series ( Neumann 1907a).

The habitat was given in the description as “Nord- und Ost-Küste des Victoria Nyansa, Albert Nyansa und oberer Weisser Nil” (northern and eastern shores of Lake Victoria , Lake Albert and the upper White Nile). It was ascertained as “Kwa Mtessa in Uganda ” [Kwa Mtessa, west Mengo District, central Uganda], indicating the locality of the holotype (see Mayr et al. 1986) .