The nest of the rough-legged tyrannulet (phyllomyias burmeisteri): phylogenetic value and the importance of taxonomic tracking of natural history data

The confusing taxonomic history of Rough-legged Tyrannulet ( Phyllomyias burmeisteri ) casts doubt on whether a nest and egg from Brazilian Atlantic Forest might instead belong to the Greenish Tyrannulet ( Phyllomyias virescens ). A nest of P. burmeisteri placed 7.6 m.-up on a horizontal fork in a secondary horizontal branch of Myroxylon peruiferum in late December 2013 in the Yungas of Argentina was a relatively large cup lined and covered with green old-man's beard in the upper outer rim, with abundant relatively large flakes of foliar lichens on the sides. Another nest found in early September 1995 in the Atlantic Forest of Paraguay was a cup made of twigs, roots and covered in lichen, placed c.20 m.-up on a horizontal bough. These nests resembled that reported by Ihering. Usage of cup-shaped nests to establish phylogenetic relationships is limited by their simplicity and the lack of detailed descriptions.