Birds of India - The New Synopsis

A complete checklist of bird species and subspecies found in India

Passeriformes (Perching Birds)

Prunellidae (Accentors)

• Prunella Vieillot, 1816 Analyse d'une Nouvelle Ornithologie Élémentaire p.43 Fauvette de haie Buffon ; Type by monotypy = Motacilla modularis Linnaeus, 1758
  • 1271. Altai Accentor Prunella himalayana (Blyth, 1842) [HB#1780]
    Original Description: Accentor Himalayanus? Blyth, 1842 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 11 p.187 (Himalaya)
    Taxonomy: Blyth described this species, in February 1842 from a collection by Pearson. The type specimen (ZSI#35564) marked in registers is from Darjeeling, in fact by 'T Pearson', in the year 1843. Though this remains to be relocated, it is desirous to reverify whether the year was a transcription mistake for 1842.
    Alternative Names: Himalayan Accentor, Rufous-streaked Accentor
    Distribution: Winter: Along this Himalaya from Ladakh, Kashmir through Jammu, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, N Bengal and W Arunachal.
    Type Specimen: ZSI#35564 (Holotype).
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, USNM, YPM
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: Baker's Miri hills (E Arunachal) report (AR2001) not verified. No confirmed breeding records within the country.
  
  
  • 1272. Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris (Scopoli, 1769)
    Original Description: Sturnus collaris Scopoli, 1769 Annus I Historico-naturalis. Descriptiones avium musei proprii earumque rariorum, quas vidit in vivario Augustiss. Imperatorus, et museo excell. Comitis Francisci Annib. Turriani p.131
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1272a. Prunella collaris rufilata (Severtsov, 1879) [HB#1777]
      Original Description: Accentor rufilatus Severtsov, 1879 Izvestiya Imperatorskago Obshchestva Lyubitelei Estestvoznaniya, Antropologii i Etnografii 1, fasc. 1 p.45
      Distribution: Gilgit and Astor.
      Specimens: NHMUK, USNM
    • 1272b. Prunella collaris whymperi (Baker, 1915) [HB#1778]
      Original Description: Laiscopus collaris whymperi Baker, 1915 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 35 p.61 (Garhwal)
      Taxonomy: Intergrades with rufilata in Ladakh.
      Distribution: W Himalaya from Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal till Kumaon (Uttarakhand).
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1915.4.28.3 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM
    • 1272c. Prunella collaris nipalensis (Blyth, 1843) [HB#1779]
      Original Description: A.(ccentor) Nipalensis Blyth, 1843 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. 12, Part 2, N° 143 p.958-959
      Taxonomy: Population in Nagaland (Bora & Mondal 2024, IB 19 (5): 161) has not been taxonomically sampled and might belong to a distinct subspecies.
      Distribution: Sikkim, N Bengal, and Arunachal. Also, in Naga hills.
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM
  
  
  • 1273. Maroon-backed Accentor Prunella immaculata (Hodgson, 1845) [HB#1788]
    Original Description: Acc.(entor) immaculatus Hodgson, 1845 Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London Part 13, no.146 p. 34
    Distribution: Sikkim, N Bengal, and Arunachal.
    Specimens: NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, BNHM
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: Reports from Uttarakhand (RA2012) and Nagaland not investigated.
  
  
  • 1274. Robin Accentor Prunella rubeculoides (Moore, 1854)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1274a. Prunella rubeculoides muraria Meinertzhagen & Meinertzhagen, 1926
      Original Description: Prunella rubeculoides muraria Meinertzhagen & Meinertzhagen, 1926 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 46 p.99 (Astor)
      Taxonomy: Not always recognised (AR2001, RA2012).
      Distribution: W Himalaya from Astor, Ladakh, Kashmir (sporadic), and Himachal.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1897.12.10.1123 (Holotype).
      Specimens: NHMUK, AMNH
      Notes: No Uttarakhand reports found.
    • 1274b. Prunella rubeculoides rubeculoides (Moore, 1854) [HB#1781]
      Original Description: Accentor rubeculoides Moore, 1854 A catalogue of the birds in The Museum of the Hononrable East-India Company 1 p.361
      Distribution: Sikkim and N Bengal (historical).
      Specimens: NHMUK, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM
      Notes: No reports from Arunachal.
  
  
  • 1275. Black-throated Accentor Prunella atrogularis (Brandt, 1843)
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1275a. Prunella atrogularis atrogularis (Brandt, 1843) [HB#1787]
      Original Description: Accentor atragularis Brandt, 1843 Bulletin de la Classe Physico-Mathématique de l'Académie Impériale des Sciences de Saint-Pétersbourg 2 no.9,10 col.140
      Distribution: Winter: Gilgit.
      Specimens: NHMUK
    • 1275b. Prunella atrogularis huttoni (Moore, 1854) [HB#1786]
      Original Description: Accentor huttoni Moore, 1854 A catalogue of the birds in The Museum of the Hononrable East-India Company 1 p.360
      Taxonomy: Sometimes considered as the new name for atrogularis Blyth 1849 [pro Hutton, 1849, in error]. However, that name is not available. See Praveen & van Grouw (2025, Avian Systematics 2 (7): 79).
      Distribution: Winter: W Himalaya from Gilgit, Ladakh, Kashmir, Jammu, Himachal through Uttarakhand; also adjoining E Punjab and NE Haryana.
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, FMNH, USNM
  
  
  • 1276. Rufous-breasted Accentor Prunella strophiata (Blyth, 1843)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1276a. Prunella strophiata jerdoni (Brooks, 1872) [HB#1782]
      Original Description: Accentor Jerdoni Brooks, 1872 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. 41, Part 2, N° 4 p.327-328 (Kashmir)
      Distribution: W Himalaya from Gilgit, Kashmir, Ladakh, Jammu, Himachal till Uttarakhand – straggling to extreme E Punjab.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.10.1.7105 (Syntype).
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, USNM, YPM
    • 1276b. Prunella strophiata strophiata (Blyth, 1843) [HB#1783]
      Original Description: A.(ccentor) strophiatus Blyth, 1843 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 12 p.959
      Distribution: Sikkim, N Bengal, and Arunachal.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM
  
  
  • 1277. Brown Accentor Prunella fulvescens (Severtsov, 1873)
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1277a. Prunella fulvescens fulvescens (Severtsov, 1873) [HB#1784]
      Original Description: Accentor fulvescens Severtsov, 1873 Izvestiya Imperatorskago Obshchestva Lyubitelei Estestvoznaniya, Antropologii i Etnografii 8 pt2 p.132
      Distribution: W Himalaya from Gilgit, Ladakh, Kashmir, Himachal, and Uttarakhand (sporadically).
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH, MCZ
      Notes: See Sharma & Arora (2021, IB 17 (3): 73), Sondhi et al. (2021, IB 17 (5): 147). Migration from the extralimital population exists, but is not investigated here.
    • 1277b. Prunella fulvescens dresseri Hartert, 1910
      Original Description: Prunella fulvescens dresseri Hartert, 1910 Die Vögel der paläarktischen Fauna. Systematische Übersicht der in Europa, Nord-Asien und der Mittelmeerregion vorkommenden Vögel Band I Heft VI p. 770
      Distribution: Vagrant. Reported only from Gilgit.
      Specimens: NHMUK
      Notes: Previously unreported but based on NHMUK#1897.12.10.1068 in JBNHS 121 (2) (Praveen 2024).
    • 1277c. Prunella fulvescens sushkini Collin & Hartert, 1927 [HB#1785]
      Original Description: Prunella fulvescens sushkini Collin & Hartert, 1927 Novitates Zoologicae 34(1) p.52
      Taxonomy: RA2012, IOC, and Avilist treats this as a synonym of khamensis Sushkin 1925.
      Distribution: Winter: N Sikkim.
      Notes: Though the specimen was believed to be in the NHMUK, it could not be located.