V suggested that avian vocalizations contain information about phy- logeny (Lanyon 1969; Payne 1986; Irwin 1988, 1996; Spector 1992; Martens 1996; Miller 1996; McCracken and Sheldon 1997; Mahler and Tubaro 2001; Price and Lanyon 2002a). Despite the accumulated evidence, relatively few in- vestigators have used avian vocal characters to directly estimate phylogenetic relationships among taxa; even fewer have tested the accuracy of those estimates using robust, independently derived character sets such as mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence data. Use of vocal characters is especially uncommon in studies of oscine songbirds (Lanyon 1969, Payne 1986), whose complex songs are generally presumed to be too variable and evolutionarily labile to be useful in systematic investigations. The oropendolas (genera Psarocolius, Gymno- stinops, and Ocyalus [Sibley and Monroe 1990]) are large, colonial-nesting, tropical songbirds in the New World blackbird family (Icterini). In a previous study of vocal evolution in the group (Price and Lanyon 2002a), we used 29 characters derived from their elaborate courtship songs to estimate phylogenetic affinities of three oropen- dola taxa for which molecular data were not available (P. viridis, P. angustifrons oleagineus, and G. guatimozinus). Those song characters were based mostly on spectrogram measure- ments and included a variety of temporal and frequency characteristics as well as presence or absence of various complex acoustic paerns. Molecular relationships have been determined for most other oropendolas (Price and Lanyon 2002b), and the song characters we used exhibit a notable lack of homoplasy when mapped onto A.—The accuracy with which avian song features indicate phylogenetic relationships has rarely been investigated. In a previous study of vocal evolution in oropendolas (Price and Lanyon 2002a), we estimated the phylogenetic position of the Green Oropendola (Psarocolius viridis) using characters derived from oropendolas’ elaborate courtship songs. Here, we test that estimate using mitochondrial DNA sequence data. The position of the Green Oropendola determined from molecular data is remarkably close to that based solely on song characters; both data sets support a close relationship between P. viridis and members of the genus Gymnostinops. Numerous morphological differences yet low genetic divergence among the spe- cies in question suggest that rapid diversification has occurred in the group. The fact that this position has not been proposed previously for P. viridis underscores the effectiveness of song characters for phylogenetic reconstruction. Received 27 October 2002, accepted 23 October 2003. R.—Existen pocos estudios sobre la exactitud con que las características del canto de las aves indican las relaciones filogenéticas. En un estudio previo sobre la evolución de las vo- calizaciones de las oropéndolas (Price y Lanyon 2002a), estimamos la posición filogenética de Psarocolius viridis utilizando caracteres derivados de los elaborados cantos de cortejo de estas aves. En este estudio, ponemos a prueba dicha estimación utilizando secuencias de ADN mito- condrial. La posición filogenética de P. viridis determinada a partir de los datos moleculares es extremadamente similar a aquella basada sólo en los caracteres del canto; ambos tipos de datos apoyan una relación cercana entre P. viridis y miembros del género Gymnostinops. La existencia de numerosas diferencias morfológicas con poca divergencia genética entre las especies en cuestión sugiere que el grupo se diversificó rápidamente. El hecho de que esta posición no haya sido propuesta previamente para P. viridis resalta la efectividad de los caracteres del canto para la reconstrucción de filogenias. James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108, USA J. J P 1 S M. L SONG AND MOLECULAR DATA IDENTIFY CONGRUENT BUT NOVEL AFFINITIES OF THE GREEN OROPENDOLA (PSAROCOLIUS VIRIDIS) The Auk 121(1):224–229, 2004 1 Present Address: Department of Biology, St. Mary’s College of Maryland, 18952 East Fisher Road, St. Mary’s City, Maryland 20686, USA. E-mail: jjprice@smcm.edu 224 Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/auk/article/121/1/224/5562333 by guest on 24 February 2022