Anthoscopus

Anthoscopus
File:African Penduline-Tit (Anthoscopus caroli).jpg
Grey penduline tit, Anthoscopus caroli
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Remizidae
Genus:	Anthoscopus Cabanis, 1851
Type species
Sylvia minuta (Cape penduline tit) Shaw, 1812
File:Anthoscopus distribution map.png

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.

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.

Taxonomy

The genus Anthoscopus was introduced in 1851 by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis with the Cape penduline tit as the type species. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek anthos meaning "blossom" or "flower" with skopos meaning "searcher".

The genus contains the following six species:

Image	Common name	Scientific name	Distribution
	Sennar penduline tit	Anthoscopus punctifrons	Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sudan
File:Faune de la Sénégambie (14280729098) (cropped).jpg	Yellow penduline tit	Anthoscopus parvulus	Sudan (region)
File:Anthoscopus musculus Gronvold (cropped).jpg	Mouse-colored penduline tit	Anthoscopus musculus	Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda
	Forest penduline tit	Anthoscopus flavifrons	Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria.
File:Grey penduline tit, Anthoscopus caroli, also known as the African penduline-tit at Ndumo Nature Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (28302297093).jpg	Grey penduline tit or African penduline tit	Anthoscopus caroli	Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
File:Southern Penduline-Tit (Anthoscopus minutus).jpg	Cape penduline tit or Southern penduline tit	Anthoscopus minutus	Angola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.