Anthoscopus

Anthoscopus is a genus of birds in the penduline tit family Remizidae. The genus is restricted to Sub-Saharan Africa, where it ranges from the Sahel to South Africa. Unlike many of the Eurasian penduline, these species are not generally migratory, instead remaining close to their breeding sites year round. A wide range of habitats is occupied by the six species, from deserts to woodlands to rainforest.

Anthoscopus
Grey penduline tit,
Anthoscopus caroli
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Remizidae
Genus: Anthoscopus
Cabanis, 1850

Nests

Their pendulous and elaborately woven nests have false entrances above the true entrance, these in turn lead to a false chamber. The true nesting chamber is accessed by the parent opening a hidden flap, entering and then closing the flap shut again, the two sides sealing with sticky spider webs. These false entrances are used to confuse potential predators and protect the eggs and nestlings.[1]

Species

It contains the following six species:

ImageCommon NameScientific nameDistribution
Sennar penduline titAnthoscopus punctifronsCameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sudan
Yellow penduline titAnthoscopus parvulusBenin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, South Sudan, and Togo
Mouse-colored penduline titAnthoscopus musculusEthiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda
Forest penduline titAnthoscopus flavifronsCameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria.
Grey penduline titAnthoscopus caroliAngola, Botswana, Burundi, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Cape penduline titAnthoscopus minutusAngola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

References
  1. Madge, Steve (2008), "Family Remizidae (Penduline- )", in Josep, del Hoyo; Andrew, Elliott; David, Christie (eds.), Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 13, Penduline- to Shrikes, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 52–75, ISBN 978-84-96553-45-3


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