Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch (Sitta cinnamoventris)
Illustration redrawn by AI from a real photograph

Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch

Sitta cinnamoventris Blyth, 1842

≈15 cmLength20 gWeight

Its wings and tail show strong black-and-white contrast, with large white patches on the tail.

Busiest months: February · Most records: India, Nepal, Bhutan

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

  1. Large white patches on the tail
  2. Silvery-white edges to the primaries
  3. White ear-coverts do not extend onto the chin

Male, female and young

In the eastern Himalayan subspecies koelzi, females are darker than females of other subspecies.

Where and when it's recorded

Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch has been recorded at 142 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 7 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. SattalIndia1,254 records
  2. Wildlife Institute of IndiaIndia1,164 records
  3. Forest Research Institute (FRI), New Forest CampusIndia741 records
More places
  1. Mahananda WLS – Rongtong and Shivakhola ForestIndia697 records
  2. Mahananda WLS – LatpancharIndia452 records
  3. Corbett NP – DhikalaIndia326 records
  4. Nameri National Park & SurroundingsIndia317 records
  5. Wildlife Institute of India (WII) – Nature Trail & LakeIndia314 records
  6. Chitwan National ParkNepal306 records
  7. Dihing Patkai NP – SoraipungIndia249 records

Countries and regions with the most records

IndiaNepalBhutanChinaPakistanMyanmar (Burma)Laos

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

Questions

How big is the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch?

The Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch is about ≈15 cm long and weighs around 20 g.

Where does the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: northern Pakistan to northern Southeast Asia. It is most often recorded in India, Nepal and Bhutan.

When is the best time to see the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in February (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch as Least Concern.

What does the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch eat?

Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.

What family is the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch in?

It belongs to the family Nuthatches (Sittidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length
≈15 cm
Weight
20 g
Habitat
Forest
Diet
Insects & other invertebrates
Lifestyle
Perches in trees
Migration
Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation
Least Concern
More measurements
Wing
81 mm
Tail
44 mm
Bill
20 mm
Tarsus
19 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Oriental: northern Pakistan to northern Southeast Asia

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 2
  • Sitta cinnamoventris cinnamoventris foothills of e Himalayas to s China and ne Myanmar
  • Sitta cinnamoventris tonkinensis s China and n Indochina

Classification

Order
Passerines Passeriformes
Family
Nuthatches Sittidae
Genus
Sitta

Other birds in the genus Sitta

White-cheeked NuthatchWhite-cheeked NuthatchSitta leucopsisPrzevalski's NuthatchPrzevalski's NuthatchSitta przewalskiiGiant NuthatchGiant NuthatchSitta magnaWhite-breasted NuthatchWhite-breasted NuthatchSitta carolinensisBeautiful NuthatchBeautiful NuthatchSitta formosaBlue NuthatchBlue NuthatchSitta azureaVelvet-fronted NuthatchVelvet-fronted NuthatchSitta frontalisYellow-billed NuthatchYellow-billed NuthatchSitta solangiaeSulphur-billed NuthatchSulphur-billed NuthatchSitta oenochlamysPygmy NuthatchPygmy NuthatchSitta pygmaeaBrown-headed NuthatchBrown-headed NuthatchSitta pusillaBahama NuthatchBahama NuthatchSitta insularis
Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch

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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Uday Tarphe. ↗

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