Royal Albatross, C & B taxonomy and Biogeography.

["Ross Silcock" <>]

Mike et al:

Sorry I wasn't more clear; my comment referred to "given populations" not 
specifically the Royal Alby pair. I replied off-line to John as follows (in 
part):
<<<Actually, I don't think the evidence suggests the Royals are separate
species. Here's what I say in my Pacific Checklist (www.rosssilcock.com):
"It has been proposed (Robertson and Nunn in Robertson and Gales 1998) that
the 2 subspecies be accorded specific status, although mixed pairs occur SI 
[South Island]
and Auckland Is (see below; Robertson and Gales 1998), and cytochrome b
studies show very little distance between the taxa (Penhallurick and Wink
2004). Although plumage sequences differ significantly, the taxa are
retained as subspecies herein, as suggested by Penhallurick and Wink
(2004).">>>

Ross

Ross Silcock
P.O. Box 57
Tabor, IA 51653
New Zealand Land and Pelagic Bird Tours
http://www.rosssilcock.com