Periparus

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Periparus
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 rubidiventris Periparus amabilis Periparus venustulus Periparus elegans Periparus ater

Periparus is a genus of birds in the tit family that, as defined here, consists of the following species:

• Rufous-naped Tit or Black-breasted 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 Spot-winged Tit or Black-crested Tit, may be a separate species, in which case other races of the Coal Tit would be as well.

[edit] 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 9788496553422
• 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.