The
Desert Finch, Carduelis obsoletus (formerly Rhodopechys
obsoleta), has turned out to belong to the genus Carduelis
as indicated by DNA sequences, song and eyestripe pattern;
it shares a common ancestor with the greenfinches Zamora et al., 2006). See the
species account for details.
References
Cabanis, Jean (1851): [Genus Rhodopechys]
In: Museum Heineanum. Verzeichniss der
ornithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand
Heine, etc.1(20): 157 (note) [in German]
PDF fulltext available at Gallica: search for "Cabanis"
Zamora, Jorge; Lowy, Ernesto; Ruiz-del-Valle,
Valentin; Moscoso, Juan; Serrano-Vela, Juan Ignacio;
Rivero-de-Aguilar, Juan & Arnaiz-Villena, Antonio
(2006): Rhodopechys obsoleta (desert finch): a
pale ancestor of greenfinches (Carduelis spp.)
according to molecular phylogeny. Journal of
Ornithology147(3): 448–456.
DOI:10.1007/s10336-005-0036-2
(HTML abstract). Erratum, Journal of Ornithology147(3): 511–512
DOI:10.1007/s10336-006-0072-6