Melaniparus is a genus of birds in the tit family. The species were formerly placed in the speciose genus Parus but were moved to Melaniparus based on a molecular phylogenetic analysis published in 2013 that showed that the members formed a distinct clade.[1] The genus Melaniparus had originally been introduced by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1850.[2] The type species was subsequently designated as the southern black tit (Melaniparus niger).[3] [4] The name of the genus combines the Ancient Greek melas, melanos "black" and the genus Parus introduced by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.[5]
The following species, all from Africa and mostly having dark plumage, have been placed in the genus:[6]
| Image | Scientific name | Common Name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melaniparus guineensis | Africa from Senegal in the west to Kenya and Ethiopia in the east | ||
| Melaniparus leucomelas | central Africa, from Angola in the west to Ethiopia in the east | ||
| Melaniparus niger | Angola to the Eastern Cape, South Africa | ||
| Melaniparus carpi | Angola and Namibia | ||
| Melaniparus albiventris | Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda | ||
| Melaniparus leuconotus | Eritrea and Ethiopia. | ||
| Melaniparus funereus | Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Uganda | ||
| Melaniparus rufiventris | Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Zambia, Namibia and Botswana | ||
| Melaniparus pallidiventris | Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe | ||
| Melaniparus fringillinus | Kenya and Tanzania | ||
| Melaniparus fasciiventer | Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda. | ||
| Melaniparus thruppi | Acacia tit or Somali Tit | Ethiopia and Somalia south to north eastern Tanzania | |
| Melaniparus griseiventris | Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe | ||
| Melaniparus cinerascens | Angola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. | ||
| Melaniparus afer | Lesotho and South Africa | ||