Hedges S B, Simmons M D, van Dijk M A, Caspers G J, de Jong W W, Sibley C G
Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park 16802, USA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1995 Dec 5;92(25):11662-5. doi: 10.1073/pnas.92.25.11662.
The hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin) lives in the humid lowlands of northern and central South America, often in riparian habitats. It is a slender bird approximately 65 cm in length, brownish with lighter streaks and buffy tips to the long tail feathers. The small head has a ragged, bristly crest of reddish-brown feathers, and the bare skin of the face is bright blue. It resembles a chachalaca (Ortalis, Cracidae) in size and shape, but its plumage and markings are similar to those of the smaller guira cuckoo (Guira guira). The hoatzin (pronounced Watson) has been a taxonomic puzzle since it was described in 1776. It usually has been viewed as related to the gallinaceous birds, but alliances to other groups have been suggested, including the cuckoos. We present DNA sequence evidence from the 12S and 16S rRNA mitochondrial genes, and from the nuclear gene that codes for the eye lens protein, alpha A-crystallin. The results indicate that the hoatzin is most closely related to the typical cuckoos and that the divergence occurred at or near the base of the cuculiform phylogenetic tree.
麝雉（学名：Opisthocomus hoazin）生活在南美洲北部和中部的湿润低地，常栖息于河岸栖息地。它是一种体型修长的鸟类，体长约65厘米，羽毛呈褐色，带有较浅的条纹，长长的尾羽尖端呈浅黄色。小小的头部有一个由红棕色羽毛构成的参差不齐、毛茸茸的羽冠，脸部的裸露皮肤呈亮蓝色。它在大小和形状上类似凤冠雉（Ortalis属，凤冠雉科），但其羽毛和斑纹与较小的圭拉杜鹃（Guira guira）相似。自1776年被描述以来，麝雉（发音为“沃森”）一直是一个分类学上的难题。它通常被认为与鸡形目鸟类有关，但也有人提出它与其他类群有亲缘关系，包括杜鹃。我们展示了来自线粒体12S和16S rRNA基因以及编码眼晶状体蛋白αA-晶状体蛋白的核基因的DNA序列证据。结果表明，麝雉与典型的杜鹃关系最为密切，这种分化发生在杜鹃形系统发育树的基部或基部附近。
