Herpetotherinae is a subfamily of falconid birds of prey that includes eight species in two genera Herpetotheres (the laughing falcon) and Micrastur (forest falcons).[1][2][3][4] Both genera are found in South America and the subfamily is basal to the other falconid subfamilies where they split off around 30.2 million years ago in the Oligocene epoch.[4] The two extant herpetotherine genera split around 20 million years ago in the Miocene epoch with the extinct genus Thegornis.[2]

Herpetotherinae
Temporal range:
Oligocene - Holocene, 30.2–0 Ma
Cryptic forest falcon, Micrastur mintoni
Laughing falcon, Herpetotheres cachinnans
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Falconidae
Subfamily: Herpetotherinae
Lesson, 1843
Genera

References

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  1. ^ "A classification of the bird species of South America". South American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Archived from the original on August 1, 2009. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  2. ^ a b Fuchs, J.; Johnson, J. A.; Mindell, D. P. (2015). "Rapid diversification of falcons (Aves: Falconidae) due to expansion of open habitats in the Late Miocene". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 82: 166–182. Bibcode:2015MolPE..82..166F. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2014.08.010. PMID 25256056.
  3. ^ Wink, M. (2018). "Phylogeny of Falconidae and phylogeography of Peregrine Falcons". Ornis Hungarica. 26 (2): 27–37. doi:10.1515/orhu-2018-0013. S2CID 91204703.
  4. ^ a b Mindell, M. D.; Fuchs, J.; Johnson, J. A. (2018). "1". In Sarasola, J.; Grande, J.; Negro, J. (eds.). Birds of Prey: Biology and conservation in the XXI century. Springer, Chame. pp. 3–32. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-73745-4_1. ISBN 978-3-319-73745-4.