Przevalski's Nuthatch

About the Przevalski's Nuthatch

Przevalski's nuthatch (Sitta przewalskii) is a bird species in the family Sittidae, collectively known as nuthatches. Long regarded as a subspecies of the white-cheeked nuthatch (Sitta leucopsis), it nevertheless differs significantly in morphology and vocal behaviour. Both S. przewalskii and S. leucopsis have been regarded in the past as closely related to the North American white-breasted nuthatch (S. carolinensis), but this is not supported by modern genetic research. It is a medium-sized nuthatch, measuring about 13 cm (5 in) in length. Its upper body is a dark grey-blue or slate colour, becoming dark blue-black at the crown. The cheeks and throat are a pale buff-orange, turning to a rich cinnamon on the underparts that intensifies on the sides of the breast. The calls consist of alternating series of ascending whistles and short notes.

The bird is endemic to areas in southeastern Tibet and west central China, including eastern Qinghai, Gansu and Sichuan, inhabiting coniferous montane forest of spruce (Picea) and fir (Abies). The altitude at which it nests varies according to locality, but typically is from 2,250–4,500 m (7,380–14,760 ft). The species was first described in 1891 from a specimen collected in China's Haidong Prefecture. The common name and Latin binomial commemorate the Russian explorer Nikolay Przhevalsky, who first recorded the species in 1884. Little is known about its ecology, which is probably comparable to that of other nuthatches.

It was given the rank of full species (separate from the white-cheeked nuthatch) in 2005 in Pamela C. Rasmussen's Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide. Other authorities followed suit; phylogenetic studies in 2014 and 2020 found it to be one of a basal pair, with S. leucopsis, of the nuthatch evolutionary tree out of all species examined, dispelling a hypothesis that S. przewalskii could be related S. carolinensis. Wikipedia →