The minivets are

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by t ...

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

s belonging to the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Pericrocotus'' in the cuckooshrike family Campephagidae. There are about 15 species, occurring mainly in forests in southern and eastern

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. They are fairly small, slender birds with long tails and an erect posture. Many species have bright red or yellow markings. They feed mainly on

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

s, foraging in groups in the tree canopy.

Species list

The genus contains 15 species: *

Rosy minivet The rosy minivet (''Pericrocotus roseus'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. The male is distinguished from other minivets by having a deep pink/light red shade in wings and tail and the female having an olive/olive yellow rump a ...

, ''Pericrocotus roseus'' *

Swinhoe's minivet Swinhoe's minivet or the brown-rumped minivet (''Pericrocotus cantonensis'') is a bird in the cuckooshrike family, Campephagidae. The species was first described by Robert Swinhoe in 1861. It breeds in China and winters in Mainland Southeast As ...

or brown-rumped minivet, ''Pericrocotus cantonensis'' *

Ashy minivet The ashy minivet (''Pericrocotus divaricatus'') is a passerine bird of eastern Asia belonging to the minivet genus ''Pericrocotus'' in the cuckooshrike family Campephagidae. While most of the minivets have shades of yellow, orange and red in their ...

, ''Pericrocotus divaricatus'' *

Ryukyu minivet The Ryukyu minivet (''Pericrocotus tegimae'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is Endemism, endemic to Japan. The species was previously thought to be a subspecies of the ashy minivet. Its specific name is named for the Japanes ...

, ''Pericrocotus tegimae'' *

Small minivet The small minivet (''Pericrocotus cinnamomeus'') is a small passerine bird. This minivet is found in tropical southern Asia from the Indian subcontinent east to Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Sou ...

, ''Pericrocotus cinnamomeus'' *

Fiery minivet The fiery minivet (''Pericrocotus igneus'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. Its range includes Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Its natural habitats are broadleaf, secondary and coastal forests. It is threaten ...

, ''Pericrocotus igneus'' *

Little minivet The little minivet (''Pericrocotus lansbergei''), also known as the Flores minivet, is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is endemic to Indonesia. Its natural habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of ...

, ''Pericrocotus lansbergei'' *

White-bellied minivet The white-bellied minivet (''Pericrocotus erythropygius'') is a species of minivet found in Nepal and India, mostly in dry deciduous forest. Etymology The origin of the vernacular name of minivets is not known but it seems to be the English ad ...

, ''Pericrocotus erythropygius'' *

Jerdon's minivet Jerdon's minivet (''Pericrocotus albifrons'') is a species of minivet found in Myanmar, mostly in dry deciduous forest. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the white-bellied minivet The white-bellied minivet (''Pericrocotus erythropygi ...

, ''Pericrocotus albifrons'' *

Grey-chinned minivet The grey-chinned minivet (''Pericrocotus solaris'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found from the Himalayas to China, Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Its natural habitat is forests about in elevation. The International Union ...

, ''Pericrocotus solaris'' *

Long-tailed minivet The long-tailed minivet (''Pericrocotus ethologus'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found in southern and south-eastern Asia where it occurs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakis ...

, ''Pericrocotus ethologus'' *

Short-billed minivet The short-billed minivet (''Pericrocotus brevirostris'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtro ...

, ''Pericrocotus brevirostris'' *

Sunda minivet The Sunda minivet (''Pericrocotus miniatus'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is endemic to Indonesia, where it occurs on Sumatra and Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands i ...

, ''Pericrocotus miniatus'' * Scarlet minivet, ''Pericrocotus speciosus'' *

Orange minivet The orange minivet (''Pericrocotus flammeus'') is a brightly colored bird in the cuckooshrike family, Campephagidae. It is found all along the Western Ghats and west coast of India and Sri Lanka. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the ...

, ''Pericrocotus flammeus''

References

*Perrins, Christopher, ''ed.'' (2004) ''The New Encyclopedia of Birds'', Oxford University Press, Oxford. {{Taxonbar, from=Q1082724 * Bird genera