Spectacled Whitestart (Myioborus melanocephalus) - HBW 15, p. 785

Taxonomy: Setophaga melanocephala Tschudi, 1844, Maraynioc, Juní.
Forms a superspecies with M. ornatus, and possibly also M. albifrons; the three form a monophyletic clade. It has been suggested that present species and M. ornatus may be better regarded as conspecific, but such treatment appears not to be supported by recent study of phylogeny of genus. Seems especially close to race chrysops of M. ornatus, and several records in potential zone of range overlap (extreme SW Colombia and adjacent NW Ecuador) of individuals intermediate in head pattern between race ruficoronatus of present species and chrysops; these originally thought to be variants of ruficoronatus, but may be result of hybridization, or even be an undescribed race of one or other species; recent record of pair of apparently phenotypically pure chrysops from this area lends weight to hybrid theory. Within present species, rufous-capped races ruficoronatus and griseonuchus formerly considered to represent a separate species; latter race, however, has small rufous crown patch and shares pattern of extended black on face with adjacent black-crowned race malaris; thus, griseonuchus and malaris appear to link black-crowned and rufous-crowned forms. Five subspecies recognized.