Pomatorhinus

Pomatorhinus is a genus of scimitar babblers, jungle birds with long downcurved bills. These are birds of tropical Asia, with the greatest number of species occurring in hills of the Himalayas.

These are medium-sized, floppy-tailed landbirds with soft plumage. They are typically long-tailed, dark brown above, and white or orange-brown below. Many have striking head patterns, with a broad black band through the eye, bordered with white above and below.

They have strong legs and are quite terrestrial. Like other babblers, these are noisy birds, and the characteristic bubbling calls are often the best indication that these birds are present. As with other babbler species, they frequently occur in groups of up to a dozen, and the rainforest species like the Indian scimitar babbler often occur in the mixed feeding flocks typical of tropical Asian jungle.

Taxonomy

The genus Pomatorhinus was introduced in 1821 by the American naturalist Thomas Horsfield to accommodate a single species, Pomatorhinus montanus Horsfield, the Javan scimitar babbler.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> This species is the type species of the genus.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The genus name combines the Ancient Greek πωμα/pōma, πωματος/pōmatos meaning "lid" or "cover" with ῥις/rhis, ῥινος/rhinos meaning "nostrils".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The genus contains 11 species.<ref name=ioc>Template:Cite web</ref> The cladogram below showing the relationships within the genus is based on a 2019 molecular phylogenetic study by Tianlong Cai and coworkers:<ref name="Caietal2019">Template:Cite journal</ref>

Species

Image	Common name	Scientific name	Distribution
File:Indian Scimitar babbler (cropped).JPG	Indian scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus horsfieldii	Peninsular India
File:Sri Lanka Scimitar-babbler (cropped).jpg	Sri Lanka scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus melanurus	Sri Lanka
File:0A2A0688 White-browed Scimitar-Babbler.jpg	Sunda scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus bornensis	Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.
File:Pomatorhinus schisticep olivaceus - Kaeng Krachan.jpg	White-browed scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus schisticeps	Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam.
File:Babbler, Chestnut-backed Scimitar6.jpg	Javan scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus montanus	Indonesia
File:Streak-breasted Scimitar Babbler.jpg	Streak-breasted scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus ruficollis	Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, and Vietnam.
File:Taiwan Scimitar-babbler - Taiwan S4E6137 (19301824690).jpg	Taiwan scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus musicus	Taiwan
File:Pomatorhinus ochraceiceps 105776427 (cropped).jpg	Red-billed scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus ochraceiceps	Northeast India, Southeast Asia and adjacent parts of southern China.
File:Coral-billed Scimitar-Babbler - Eaglenest - India FJ0A0431 (33475550733).jpg	Black-crowned scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus ferruginosus	Bhutan, India, Nepal, China.
File:Brown-crowned Scimitar-babbler Pomatorhinus phayrei by Dr. Raju Kasambe (2).jpg	Brown-crowned scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus phayrei	Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, China.
File:Slender-billed Scimitar Babbler.jpg	Slender-billed scimitar babbler	Pomatorhinus superciliaris	the Himalayas to north-western Vietnam.

References

• Collar, N. J. & Robson, C. 2007. Family Timaliidae (Babblers) pp. 70 – 291 in; del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

External links

• Template:Commons category-inline
• Template:Wikispecies-inline