Yunnan Nuthatch
Sitta yunnanensis Ogilvie-Grant, 1900
12 cmLength9.9 gWeight
This small nuthatch has a blue-gray back, a black eyestripe and a single thin white supercilium above the eye.
Busiest months: July and December · Most records: China
Looks like Giant Nuthatch, Chestnut-vented Nuthatch
How to identify
Field marks
- Thin white supercilium above the black eyestripe
- Broad, long black eyestripe reaching as far as the scapulars
- Blue-gray upperparts
- Pale yellowish-brown underparts tinged with pink, becoming grayish-white with wear
Male, female and young
Sexes differ little; the female averages a paler eyestripe and duller, grayer underparts. Juveniles are duller, with a less distinct supercilium.
Voice
Quite noisy, often repeating “nit” in sequences of “kni-kni-kni” and “pi-pi-pi”; also gives a nasal “toik”.
Similar species
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: July and December · Most records: China
Yunnan Nuthatch has been recorded at 30 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 1 country or region.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Zixi Mountain PNRChina126 records
- Heilongtan Park, LijiangChina24 records
- Jade Dragon Snow MountainChina21 records
More places
- Zixi Mountain PNR – North Gate AreaChina8 records
- Pamuling TempleChina7 records
- Potatso National ParkChina4 records
- Yubeng VillageChina4 records
- Shigu TownChina3 records
- Lashihai Lake – South ShoreChina3 records
- Sanjiacun ReservoirChina2 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The Yunnan nuthatch (Sitta yunnanensis) is a bird species in the nuthatch family Sittidae. It was first described by William Robert Ogilvie-Grant in 1900 based on a male holotype. It is a small nuthatch, measuring 12 centimetres (4.7 in) in length on average and weighs between 7.5 and 13 grams (0.26 and 0.46 oz).
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Yunnan Nuthatch?
The Yunnan Nuthatch is about 12 cm long and weighs around 9.9 g.
Where does the Yunnan Nuthatch live?
Its breeding range: Oriental: southwestern China. It is most often recorded in China.
When is the best time to see the Yunnan Nuthatch?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in July and December (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Yunnan Nuthatch endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Yunnan Nuthatch as Least Concern.
What does the Yunnan Nuthatch eat?
Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.
What family is the Yunnan Nuthatch in?
It belongs to the family Nuthatches (Sittidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).
At a glance
- Length
- 12 cm
- Weight
- 9.9 g
- Habitat
- Woodland
- Diet
- Insects & other invertebrates
- Lifestyle
- Perches in trees
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 72 mm
- Tail
- 42 mm
- Bill
- 16 mm
- Tarsus
- 15 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Oriental: southwestern China
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Passerines Passeriformes
- Family
- Nuthatches Sittidae
- Genus
- Sitta
Other birds in the genus Sitta
White-cheeked NuthatchSitta leucopsis
Przevalski's NuthatchSitta przewalskii
Giant NuthatchSitta magna
White-breasted NuthatchSitta carolinensis
Beautiful NuthatchSitta formosa
Blue NuthatchSitta azurea
Velvet-fronted NuthatchSitta frontalis
Yellow-billed NuthatchSitta solangiae
Sulphur-billed NuthatchSitta oenochlamys
Pygmy NuthatchSitta pygmaea
Brown-headed NuthatchSitta pusilla
Bahama NuthatchSitta insularis
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Rofikul Islam. ↗
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