Birds of India - The New Synopsis

A complete checklist of bird species and subspecies found in India

Passeriformes (Perching Birds)

Sittidae (Nuthatches)

• Sitta Linnaeus, 1758 Systema Naturæ per Regna Tria Naturæ, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata 1 p.115 Sitta europaea Linnaeus, 1758; Type by monotypy
  • 1047. White-cheeked Nuthatch Sitta leucopsis Gould, 1850 [HB#1832]
    Original Description: Sitta leucopsis Gould, 1850 The birds of Asia 2 pt1 pl.46, text (Interior NW Himalaya)
    Distribution: Gilgit, Kashmir, Jammu, Himachal, and Uttarakhand.
    Type Specimen: NHMUK#1860.4.16.494 (Syntype).
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, USNM, YPM
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Endemic: Western Himalaya.
  
  
  • 1048. Beautiful Nuthatch Sitta formosa Blyth, 1843 [HB#1837]
    Original Description: Sitta formosa Blyth, 1843 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 12 p.938 (Darjeeling)
    Distribution: N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, Nagaland, Cachar, and Manipur.
    Type Specimen: ZSI#30031 (Holotype).
    Specimens: ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, USNM, YPM
    IUCN: Vulnerable. SoIB: High. WLPA: Schedule-I.
    Notes: Meghalaya reports not verified.
  
  
  • 1049. Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis Swainson, 1820
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1049a. Sitta frontalis frontalis Swainson, 1820 [HB#1838]
      Original Description: Sitta frontalis Swainson, 1820 Zoological Illustrations ser.1, 1 pl.2
      Taxonomy: Includes simplex Koelz 1939 from Londa, NW Karnataka.
      Distribution: E Himachal, Uttarakhand, adjoining N Uttar Pradesh, N Bihar (Valmiki), N Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, adjoining Arunachal, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Cachar, Manipur, and Mizoram; disjunctly in the hills of Peninsular India from Chota Nagpur plateau region of Jharkhand, NW Odisha, C Indian highlands, Surat Dangs, W Ghats, E Ghats as well as hillocks of E Deccan in Telangana.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, TNHM, MYS, HYD, LKO, BNHM
  
  
  • 1050. Yunnan Nuthatch Sitta yunnanensis Ogilvie-Grant, 1900
    Original Description: Sitta yunnanensis Ogilvie-Grant, 1900 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 10 p.37
    Distribution: Restricted to the Walong region in E Arunachal.
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: See Bonpo & Kuriakose (2014, IB 9 (4): 106).
  
  
  • 1051. White-tailed Nuthatch Sitta himalayensis Jardine & Selby, 1835 [HB#1834-1835]
    Original Description: Sitta himalayensis Jardine & Selby, 1835 Illustrations of ornithology 3 pl.144 (Shimla)
    Taxonomy: Includes australis Koelz 1952 from Nagaland (recognised by AR2001) and lushaiensis Koelz 1952 from Mizoram, latter treated differently in RA2012.
    Distribution: Along the Himalaya from Himachal, Uttarakhand, N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram.
    Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.6.24.269 (Syntype).
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, LKO, BNHM
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: Meghalaya sight reports not verified.
  
  
  • 1052. Chestnut-vented Nuthatch Sitta nagaensis Godwin-Austen, 1874
    Alternative Names: Naga Nuthatch
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1052a. Sitta nagaensis montium La Touche, 1899
      Original Description: Sitta montium La Touche, 1899 Ibis (7) 5 (19) p.404 (in text)
      Distribution: Walong region (NE Arunachal).
      Notes: Photographs only but adjacent to the known range of this subspecies. Might also occur in Upper Dibang valley as it occurs on the other side of the border in S Tibet.
    • 1052b. Sitta nagaensis nagaensis Godwin-Austen, 1874 [HB#1826]
      Original Description: Sitta nagaensis Godwin-Austen, 1874 Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London Part 1 p.44 (Naga hills)
      Distribution: Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1895.7.14.2416 (Syntype).
      Specimens: NHMUK, FMNH, YPM
      Notes: Reports from Meghalaya and Cachar not verified.
  
  
  • 1053. Kashmir Nuthatch Sitta cashmirensis Brooks, 1871 [HB#1824]
    Original Description: Sitta cashmirensis Brooks, 1871 Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 9 p.209 (Kashmir)
    Distribution: Kashmir and Jammu.
    Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.11.1.1949 (Syntype).
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, AMNH, FMNH
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Endemic: Western Himalaya.
  
  
  • 1054. Indian Nuthatch Sitta castanea Lesson, 1830 [HB#1830-1831]
    Original Description: Sitta castanea Lesson, 1830 Traité d'Ornithologie, ou Tableau Méthodique des ordres, sous-ordres, familles, tribus, genres, sous-genres et races d'oiseaux livr.4 p.316 (Bengal)
    Taxonomy: Includes prateri Whistler & Kinnear 1932 from NE Ghats.
    Distribution: Foothills of Himalaya in Himachal, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, E Rajasthan, C Indian highlands of Madhya Pradesh, N and E Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh extending to Jharkhand, N and C Odisha, and N Telangana. Disjunctly in the CW Ghats and SE Ghats from N Karnataka, through Kodagu and E Wayanad, south till Nilgiris, extending east into Biligirirangans, Melagiri, and Servarayan hills; NE Ghats of S Odisha and NE Andhra.
    Specimens: NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, MCZ, USNM
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: Does not extend further south from Nilgiris to Palakkad hills (contra AR2001). Distribution in S W Bengal in (Manna et al. 2024, IB 20 (4): 117) considered tentative here.
  
  
  • 1055. Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch Sitta cinnamoventris Blyth, 1842
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1055a. Sitta cinnamoventris almorae Kinnear & Whistler, 1930 [HB#1827]
      Original Description: Sitta castaneoventris almorae Kinnear & Whistler, 1930 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 51 p.27 (valley of Ramganga, between Almora & Pethora)
      Distribution: W Himalaya from Kashmir, Jammu, Himachal, Uttarakhand, and N Uttar Pradesh.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.11.1.1917 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH
    • 1055b. Sitta cinnamoventris cinnamoventris Blyth, 1842 [HB#1828]
      Original Description: Sitta cinnamoventris Blyth, 1842 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. 11, Part I, N° 125 p.459 (in text) (Darjeeling)
      Distribution: N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, adjoining Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura.
      Type Specimen: ZSI#35572 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, BNHM
    • 1055c. Sitta cinnamoventris koelzi Vaurie, 1950 [HB#1829]
      Original Description: Sitta europaea koelzi Vaurie, 1950 American Museum Novitates no.1472 p.5 (Patkai hills, Arunachal)
      Taxonomy: E Manipur birds tend to show features of Burmese Nuthatch S. neglecta, and may represent an undescribed subspecies.
      Distribution: Patkai hills of E Arunachal and E Assam, Nagaland, and N Cachar.
      Type Specimen: AMNH#683925 (Holotype).
      Specimens: NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, USNM
      Notes: Range insufficiently known.