Aegithalos is a genus of passerine birds in the family Aegithalidae (bushtits), encompassing the majority of the species in the family. They are native to Europe and Asia.
Taxonomy The genus Aegithalos was introduced in 1804 by the French naturalist Johann Hermann to accommodate a single species, which he had otherwise tentatively named Pipra europaea Hermann, 1804. This is a subspecies of Parus caudatus Linnaeus, 1758, now Aegithalos caudatus europaeus, the central European 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: Image Common name Scientific name Subspecies Distribution Long-tailed tit Aegithalos caudatus 17 Throughout Europe and northern Asia, east to Kamchatka and Japan. Silver-throated bushtit Aegithalos glaucogularis 2 Central and eastern China and south towards Yunnan. White-cheeked bushtit Aegithalos leucogenys Monotypic Afghanistan, Kashmir region, and Pakistan. Pygmy bushtit Aegithalos exilis Monotypic Western and central Java, Indonesia. Black-throated bushtit Aegithalos concinnus 7 Foothills of the Himalaya, across northern India through north-eastern Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, northern Myanmar, China, Vietnam, to Taiwan; includes Ae. c. annamensis and Ae. c. iredalei, formerly sometimes treated as separate species. White-throated bushtit Aegithalos niveogularis Monotypic India, Nepal, and Pakistan. Black-browed bushtit Aegithalos iouschistos 4 Eastern and central Himalayas in Bhutan, China, India, Nepal and far northern Burma; includes Ae. i. bonvaloti and Ae. i. sharpei, formerly sometimes treated as separate species. Sooty bushtit Aegithalos fuliginosus Monotypic central China.
Fossil record Aegithalos gaspariki (Late Miocene of Polgardi, Hungary) Kessler, E. 2013. Neogene songbirds (Aves, Passeriformes) from Hungary. – Hantkeniana, Budapest, 2013, 8: 37-149. Aegithalos congruis (Pliocene of Csarnota, Hungary)
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