Periparus

Periparus
File:Parus ater 2 (Marek Szczepanek).jpg
Coal Tit, Periparus ater
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Paridae
Genus:	Periparus Sélys Longchamps, 1884
Species
Periparus ater Periparus rufonuchalis Periparus rubidiventris

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

• Coal Tit, Periparus ater
• Rufous-naped Tit, Black-breasted Tit or Dark-grey Tit, Periparus rufonuchalis
• Rufous-vented Tit, Periparus rubidiventris

In Pardaliparus:

• Elegant Tit, Pardaliparus elegans
• Palawan Tit, Pardaliparus amabilis
• Yellow-bellied Tit, Pardaliparus venustulus

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.

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.

This article is part of Project Bird Genera, a All Birds project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each genus, including made-up genera.