Criniger is a genus of songbirds in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. The species of Criniger are found in western and central Africa.

Taxonomy

The genus Criniger was introduced in 1820 by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck, the name Criniger is Latin for "long-haired" (from crinis, meaning "hair" and gerere, meaning "to carry"). A year later Temminck designated the type species as the western bearded greenbul.

Species

The genus contains five species:

ImageScientific nameCommon nameDistribution
-Western bearded greenbulCriniger barbatusGuinean Forests of West Africa
-eastern bearded greenbulCriniger chloronotusCongolian rainforests
-Red-tailed greenbulCriniger calurusAfrican tropical rainforest
-White-bearded greenbulCriniger ndussumensisCongolian rainforests
-Yellow-bearded greenbulCriniger olivaceusUpper Guinean forests

Former species

Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species (or subspecies) as species within the genus Criniger:

Further reading

  • Huntley, Jerry W.; Harvey, Johanna A.; Pavia, Marco; Boano, Giovanni; Voelker, Gary (2017). "The systematics and biogeography of the Bearded Greenbuls (Aves: Criniger) reveals the impact of Plio-Pleistocene forest fragmentation on Afro-tropical avian diversity". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 183 (3): 672–686. doi:.