White-fronted tit facts for kids
Quick facts for kids White-fronted tit |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Paridae |
| Genus: | Sittiparus |
| Species: |
S. semilarvatus
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| Binomial name | |
| Sittiparus semilarvatus (Salvadori, 1866)
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| Synonyms | |
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Cyanistes semilarvatus |
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The white-fronted tit (Sittiparus semilarvatus) is a small bird that belongs to the Paridae family. This family includes many types of tits and chickadees.
This special bird lives only in the Philippines. You can find it on the islands of Luzon and Mindanao. It likes to live in warm, wet lowland forests. Sadly, its home is shrinking because of habitat loss.
Contents
What Does the White-fronted Tit Look Like?
The white-fronted tit is a small and somewhat rare bird. It lives high up in the trees, in the forest canopy. You might spot it on branches that are easy to see.
This bird is mostly dark in color. It has a clear white mark on its face. This mark goes from its forehead down past its beak and eye.
- Males are completely black.
- Females have dark brown feathers on their undersides.
Birds from the island of Mindanao have an extra white mark on their wings. This makes them easy to tell apart from other birds.
What Sounds Do They Make?
The white-fronted tit has a unique call. It makes a series of three high-pitched notes. These notes sound like "piu-piu piu" and go down in sound. It also makes a fast, sharp trill.
Where Do White-fronted Tits Live?
This bird is found only in the Philippines. It prefers tropical moist lowland forests. These forests are warm and have a lot of rain. The birds often stay high up in the trees.
Different Types of White-fronted Tits
There are three slightly different types, or subspecies, of the white-fronted tit:
- S. s. snowi (Parkes, 1971): This type lives in northeast Luzon. It has a white patch on its wing. Its feathers are not as shiny. Female birds of this type have white patches on their neck area.
- S. s. semilarvatus (Salvadori, 1865): This type is found in central and southern Luzon.
- S. s. nehrkorni (Blasius, W, 1890): This type lives on the island of Mindanao. It is similar to the snowi type but has an even bigger white patch on its wing.
Why Are White-fronted Tits Important?
The white-fronted tit is an important part of the Philippine forest ecosystem. It helps keep the forest healthy. Protecting these birds means protecting their forest homes.
Protecting the White-fronted Tit
The IUCN has listed the white-fronted tit as "near threatened". This means it could become endangered soon.
The biggest danger to this bird is habitat loss. People are clearing forests for:
- Logging (cutting down trees)
- Farms (changing forest into farmland)
- Mining (digging for minerals)
These activities destroy the places where the white-fronted tit lives.
What is Being Done to Help?
There are no special plans just for the white-fronted tit. However, it does live in some protected areas. These include:
- Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park
- Bataan National Park
These parks help protect the forests where the birds live. Protecting these areas is very important for the future of the white-fronted tit.
 | Selma Burke |
 | Pauline Powell Burns |
 | Frederick J. Brown |
 | Robert Blackburn |
