Periparus
| Periparus | |
|---|---|
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| Coal Tit, Periparus ater | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Paridae |
| Genus: | Periparus Sélys Longchamps, 1884 |
| Species | |
|
Periparus rufonuchalis | |
Periparus is a genus of birds in the tit family that, as defined here, consists of the following species:
- Rufous-naped Tit, Black-breasted Tit or Dark-grey Tit, Periparus rufonuchalis
- Rufous-vented Tit, Periparus rubidiventris
- Palawan Tit, Periparus amabilis
- Yellow-bellied Tit, Periparus venustulus
- Elegant Tit, Periparus elegans
- Coal Tit, Periparus ater
All occur in Asia; the Coal Tit also has a wide range in Europe and North Africa. These birds have white cheeks and most have a tufted head.
Most authorities consider Periparus a subgenus of the genus Parus, but the Handbook of the Birds of the World considers it distinct (del Hoyo et al. 2007), as does the American Ornithologists' Union[citation needed]. This is supported by mtDNA (cytochrome b) sequence analysis (Gill et al., 2005).
The Yellow-bellied Tit of China and the Palawan Tit and Elegant Tit of the Philippines are sometimes placed in a separate genus, Pardaliparus.
To add to the uncertainty, the Elegant Tit is probably paraphyletic and the Coal Tit may be. The melanolophus race of the Coal Tit, called the Black-crested Tit or Spot-winged Tit, is sometimes considered a separate species.
References
- Del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2007). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-84-96553-42-2
- Gill, Frank B.; Slikas, Beth; and Sheldon, Frederick H. (2005): Phylogeny of titmice (Paridae): II. Species relationships based on sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome-b gene. Auk 122: 121-143. DOI: 10.1642/0004-8038(2005)122[0121:POTPIS]2.0.CO;2 HTML abstract
- Peterson, Alan P. (Editor). 1999. Zoological Nomenclature Resource (Zoonomen). Accessed 2007-07-29.