Yunnan Nuthatch Sitta yunnanensis is endemic to China. Ranges southeast Tibet to southwest Sichuan and across much of northern Yunnan to western Guizhou, in summer to 4000 m (13,120 ft.), in winter down to 1200 m (3,940 ft.). ID & COMPARISON Upperparts bluish-grey. Black eye-stripe fans out on sides of mantle. Uniform whitish-buff underparts (usually whitest on cheeks). Narrow white supercilium joins on forehead. Combination of grey crown, narrow white supercilium, broad black eye-stripe, and uniform underparts should clinch ID. Supercilium, however, may be faint or absent in worn plumage, leading to possible confusion with the similarly sized Chestnut-vented Nuthatch S. nagaensis and Eurasian Nuthatch S. europaea, which lack a supercilium. Chestnut-vented Nuthatch, Eurasian Nuthatch, and Giant Nuthatch S. magna have rufous undertail coverts scalloped white. Chestnut-vented Nuthatch and Eurasian Nuthatch have brick-red flanks and narrower black eye-stripe. Chinese Nuthatch S. villosa also has narrower black eye-stripe and dark crown. Juvenile duller with only faint facial markings. BARE PARTS Slender bill black with grey base to lower mandible. Feet grey. VOICE Wide array of nasal, squeaky, and scolding calls. — Craig Brelsford
THE NUTHATCHES OF CHINA
shanghaibirding.com has research on all 12 species of nuthatch in China. Click any link:
White-cheeked Nuthatch Sitta leucopsis
Przevalski’s Nuthatch S. przewalskii
Giant Nuthatch S. magna
Beautiful Nuthatch S. formosa
Velvet-fronted Nuthatch S. frontalis
Yellow-billed Nuthatch S. solangiae
Yunnan Nuthatch S. yunnanensis
Chinese Nuthatch S. villosa
White-tailed Nuthatch S. himalayensis
Eurasian Nuthatch S. europaea
Chestnut-vented Nuthatch S. nagaensis
Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch S. cinnamoventris
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Daniel Bengtsson served as chief ornithological consultant for Craig Brelsford’s Photographic Field Guide to the Birds of China, from which this species description is drawn.
