Rufous-bellied Tit
Parus rufiventris
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyParidae (Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice)
- GenusParus (Great Tits and Allies)
- SpeciesParus rufiventris (Rufous-bellied Tit)
About the Rufous-bellied Tit
The rufous-bellied tit (Melaniparus rufiventris) is a species of bird in the tit family. It is found in Africa from the Republic of the Congo, DR Congo and northern Namibia east to Tanzania and northern Mozambique. The rufous-bellied tit was formally described in 1877 by the Portuguese zoologist José Vicente Barbosa du Bocage based on a specimen collected near the town of Caconda in central Angola. He placed it with the tits in the genus Parus and coined the binomial name Parus rufiventris. The specific epithet is Modern Latin meaning "red-bellied", from Latin rufus meaning "ruddy" or "rufous" and venter, ventris meaning "belly". The rufous-bellied tit is now one of 14 tits placed in the genus Melaniparus that was introduced in 1850 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte.
Five subspecies are recognised: M. r. rufiventris (Barboza du Bocage, 1877) – south Congo and south DR Congo to central Angola and central Zambia M. r. masukuensis (Shelley, 1900) – southeast DR Congo, east Zambia and Malawi
M. r. diligens (Clancey, 1979) – south Angola, north Namibia, southwest Zambia and northwest Botswana M. r. pallidiventris (Reichenow, 1885) – Tanzania, south Malawi... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Rufous-bellied Tit in South Luangwa National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at South Luangwa National Park
Miombo Tit
Parus griseiventris
Southern Black Tit
Parus niger
Meves's Glossy-starling
Lamprotornis mevesii
White-browed Sparrow-Weaver
Plocepasser mahali
Common Bulbul
Pycnonotus barbatus
Fork-tailed Drongo
Dicrurus adsimilis
Tropical Boubou
Laniarius major
Blue-breasted Cordonbleu
Uraeginthus angolensis
African Pied Wagtail
Motacilla aguimp
White-browed Robin-Chat
Cossypha heuglini
Black-backed Puffback
Dryoscopus cubla
Red-billed Oxpecker
Buphagus erythrorhynchus
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mikumi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 2 | South Luangwa National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 3 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 4 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Rufous-bellied Tit in South Luangwa National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Rufous-bellied Tit sighting in South Luangwa National Park, based on 27 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Rufous-bellied Tit in South Luangwa National Park?
January has the highest sighting rate for Rufous-bellied Tit in South Luangwa National Park in our monthly data.