Birds

Pittidae

Pittidae, the pittas, is a family of colorful Old World ground birds in Passeriformes, from Africa to Australia, with genera Erythropitta, Hydrornis, and Pitta; leaf-litter foragers, many threatened by forest loss.

Pityriasis

Pityriasis, a monotypic passerine bird genus (Bornean Bristlehead, Pityriasis gymnocephala), family Pityriaseidae; endemic to Borneo, taxonomically enigmatic, allied with at least seven families; not the skin condition pityriasis.

Platalea

Platalea, the spoonbills, is a genus of six wading-bird species in Threskiornithidae: Eurasian, Black-faced, Royal, African, Yellow-billed, and Roseate Spoonbills, tactile feeders with spoon-shaped, remote-touch bills.

Platalea leucorodia

Platalea leucorodia, the Eurasian spoonbill (Spatola, Lepelaar), a large white colonial wader of Threskiornithidae breeding from western Europe to East Asia; Least Concern, three subspecies, tactile bill-sweeping feeder.

Platycercus

Platycercus, the rosellas, is an Australian genus of about six broad-tailed parrots erected by Vigors in 1825, split into subgenera Platycercus and Violania, ranging 25-36 cm.

Plectrophenax

Plectrophenax is a small genus of Arctic buntings in the family Calcariidae, containing the Holarctic Snow Bunting and McKay's Bunting, which breeds only on two Bering Sea islands.

Plegadis falcinellus

Plegadis falcinellus, the glossy ibis (Morito Común, Ibis falcinelle), is a cosmopolitan Threskiornithidae wading bird with iridescent dark plumage and a down-curved bill, Least Concern globally and expanding in range across Europe and North America.

Ploceidae

Ploceidae, the weaverbird family (weavers, bishops, widowbirds), is an Old World passerine family of about 122 species in 16-18 genera across Africa, Madagascar, Arabia, and Asia, defined by molecular phylogenies showing Ploceus non-monophyly and a mid-Miocene origin.

Ploceus

Ploceus, typical weavers, is a genus of Old World weaverbird (family Ploceidae) established by Cuvier in 1816 with the baya weaver as type. Molecular phylogenies show the traditional genus is polyphyletic, with Asian species retaining the name.

Plover

Plovers (Charadriidae) are round-bodied, large-eyed shorebirds of the genus Charadrius and allies, about 40 species breeding on all continents except Antarctica, foraging by run-stop-peck sight hunting; includes Piping Plover and golden-plovers.

Plumage

Plumage is a bird's complete feather covering, its coloration and patterning. Produced by melanins, carotenoids, psittacofulvins, and structural nanostructures; serves camouflage, signaling, and insulation, and is replaced through moult.

Pluvialis

Pluvialis (golden-plovers) is a genus of four migratory shorebird species in Charadriidae: Eurasian, American, and Pacific Golden Plovers plus the Grey/Black-bellied Plover, noted for long-distance loop migration and debated phylogenetic position.

Plymouth Rock chicken

Plymouth Rock chicken, also called Barred Rock (a color variety), an American dual-purpose chicken breed from Massachusetts; 200-280 brown eggs yearly, cold-hardy, calm, recognized 1874, graduated the Livestock Conservancy priority list in 2023.

Poephila

Poephila (Gould, 1842) is an Australian genus of estrildid grassfinches with three species: Long-tailed Finch P. acuticauda, Black-throated Finch P. cincta, and Masked Finch P. personata.

Poicephalus senegalus

Poicephalus senegalus, the Senegal parrot (Perroquet youyou), is a small West African savanna parrot, CITES Appendix II, IUCN Least Concern, and one of the most heavily traded parrots, with over 800,000 exported 1985-2014.

Poliocephalus

Poliocephalus (Selby, 1840) is a genus of two Southern Hemisphere grebes in Podicipedidae: the hoary-headed grebe of Australia and Tasmania and the Near Threatened New Zealand grebe of the North Island.

Polioptila

Polioptila is the gnatcatcher genus of the New World family Polioptilidae, with 12 insectivorous species from Canada to Argentina, including the migratory Blue-gray and the endangered-listed California Gnatcatcher.

Polystictus

Polystictus is a genus of tyrant flycatchers (Tyrannidae) erected by Reichenbach in 1850 with two grassland species, the migratory Near Threatened Bearded Tachuri and the Grey-backed Tachuri; the same name also denotes a fungal genus now merged into Coltricia.

Porphyrio

Porphyrio (Brisson, 1760) is the rail genus of swamphens and purple gallinules (Rallidae, Gruiformes), including the purple swamphen complex, the takahē, and the Gray-headed Swamphen established in Florida.

Porphyrio porphyrio

Porphyrio porphyrio, the purple swamphen (poule sultane; pukeko in New Zealand), is a large wetland rail of Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australasia, Least Concern, with 780,000 to 2,910,000 individuals and a disputed six-species split.

Porzana

Porzana (Vieillot, 1816) is a genus of small crakes in the rail family Rallidae, type species the spotted crake P. porzana; molecular phylogenetics showed it was not monophyletic, so most species moved to Zapornia and Hapalocrex.

Potoo

Potoos (Nyctibiidae) are seven nocturnal Neotropical bird species in the genera Nyctibius and Phyllaemulor, related to nightjars, famous for camouflaging as broken branches and hunting insects at night.

Prinia

Prinia is a genus of small, long-tailed cisticolid warblers (23–28 species) resident across Africa and southern Asia to western Indonesia, including the Plain, Ashy, Graceful, and Karoo Prinias, recently reshaped by DNA-based species splits.

Procellaria

Procellaria (gadfly-free large petrels, "creatures of the storm") is a Linnaean 1758 genus of Procellariidae with five species, including the White-chinned, Grey, Spectacled, Black, and Westland Petrels, all threatened by longline bycatch.

Procellariidae

Procellariidae, the petrel and shearwater family of tubenose seabirds (Procellariiformes), with about 100 species in 16 genera including Fulmarus, Pachyptila, Ardenna, and Puffinus; pelagic, colonial island nesters threatened by fisheries bycatch and plastic.

Procellariiformes

Procellariiformes, the tubenoses or petrels, is an order of marine birds with tubular nostrils and salt glands, covering albatrosses, shearwaters, fulmars, and storm petrels in four families, about 100 species.

Progne

Progne (New World martins) is a genus of nine swallow species in Hirundinidae, established by Boie in 1826, ranging across the Americas; type species Purple Martin Progne subis.

Psittacidae

Psittacidae (parrots) is a family of Psittaciformes birds established by Illiger in 1811, with nearly 350 species, about 28% threatened; classification scope varies from two-family to three-superfamily schemes.

Psittacula

Psittacula (Cuvier, 1800) is a genus of long-tailed Asian parakeets including the rose-ringed and Alexandrine parakeets; molecular phylogenies show it is paraphyletic, prompting proposed splits into Himalayapsitta, Alexandrinus, Palaeornis, and related genera.