Crested Tit-Warbler
Leptopoecile elegans
Small sublime bird of scrubby alpine and subalpine forests. Male has iridescent blue-green wings, a long silver cap, and rusty cheeks and neck. Female is paler, with a silvery-gray head and a thin black eyebrow. Both sexes have rosy pink flanks. Forages actively, often with other species, particularly with small tits. Gives faint high thin notes.
Identification
The crested tit-warbler (Leptopoecile elegans) is a species of bird in the family Aegithalidae. It is found in China and possibly India. Its natural habitat is boreal forest. It generally has a red hint to it and a bit of blue on, or near, its wings. The tail is of an emerald green colour. This species is considered monotypic, although it was previously divided into two subspecies: the type subspecies and the subspecies meissneri, which was lumped with elegans in 2022.
Taxonomy
Genus: Leptopoecile; Family: Aegithalidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Leptopoecile elegans
- Authority
- Przevalski, 1887
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Aegithalidae
- Genus
- Leptopoecile
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Vertical migration
Behavior
Migration pattern: Vertical migration.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Dark-sided Flycatcher
Muscicapa sibirica
Small brown flycatcher with dark smudging on the breast and sides that lend it a “vested” appearance. Tends to prefer higher-elevation forests for breeding than Asian Brown and Gray-streaked Flycatchers but uses a variety of open forests and gardens on migration and in winter. The generally darker appearance of this species when compared to Asian Brown makes the eyering more striking.
African Red-rumped Swallow
Cecropis melanocrissus
Brightly-colored swallow with a deeply forked tail, pale orangish rump, black squared-off undertail coverts, and an incomplete orange collar. Color of underparts varies geographically from pale whitish to rufous, with sparse or no streaking. Juveniles average paler and lack extensive orangish tones; may resemble house-martins but note deeply forked tail. Builds mud nests on rocks as well as human structures, and forages over a wide variety of open habitats. Frequently gives a short, sparrow-like “twi’wit.” Very similar to European Red-rumped Swallow, but with little or no streaking below.
Lesser Roadrunner
Geococcyx velox
Slightly smaller version of the familiar cartoon Greater Roadrunner, but usually the two species do not occur in the same places. Favors dry brushy woodland and overgrown weedy fields in tropical lowlands and foothills. Can be very elusive, but at other times runs out in the road or sits quietly sunning itself on a fence post or bush top in the early morning. Note that the center of the throat and breast are plain rich buffy, without the dense dark streaking of Greater Roadrunner.
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