Aegithalos is a genus of passerine birds in the family Aegithalidae (bushtits), encompassing majority of the species in the family.

Taxonomy

The genus Aegithalos was introduced in 1804 by the French naturalist Johann Hermann to accommodate a single species, Pipra europaea Hermann, 1804. This is a junior synonym of Parus caudatus Linnaeus, 1758, the long-tailed tit. The genus name is a term used by Aristotle for some European tits, including the long-tailed tit.

Species

The genus contains the following eight species:

ImageCommon nameScientific nameDistribution
Long-tailed titAegithalos caudatusnorthern Europe and the Palearctic, into boreal Scandinavia and south into the Mediterranean zone
Silver-throated bushtitAegithalos glaucogulariscentral and eastern China and south towards Yunnan
White-cheeked bushtitAegithalos leucogenysAfghanistan, Kashmir region, and Pakistan.
Black-throated bushtitAegithalos concinnusfoothills of the Himalayas, stretching across northern India through north-eastern Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, northern Myanmar, China, Vietnam, and Taiwan.
White-throated bushtitAegithalos niveogularisIndia, Nepal, and Pakistan.
Black-browed bushtitAegithalos iouschistoseastern and central Himalayas in Bhutan, China, India, Nepal and far northern Burma
Sooty bushtitAegithalos fuliginosuscentral China.
Pygmy bushtitAegithalos exilisIndonesia

Fossil record

  • Aegithalos gaspariki (Late Miocene of Polgardi, Hungary)
  • Aegithalos congruis (Pliocene of Csarnota, Hungary)