General
Information is based on dictionaries and other sources. Pinyin readings reflect standard Mandarin usage; for some dialect alternative names it may be of little practical use, especially for South China. Many Korean glosses are highly tentative. Comments and corrections welcome.
With the exception of Pitta nympha and to a less extent Pitta soror, the pittas are almost exclusively found in the far south of China, mainly in Yunnan and Guangxi provinces.
The pittas are known as 八色鸫 'eight-coloured thrush' in Chinese. In Taiwan, the only member of the family, the Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha, is known as the 八色鸟 'eight-coloured bird'. These names are based on the Japanese name for the Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha: ヤイロチョウ (八色鳥) ya-iro-tsugumi 'eight-coloured bird' or ヤイロツグミ (八色鶇) ya-iro-tsutumi 'eight-coloured thrush'. Unlike some of the drabber-looking pittas, the Fairy Pitta very much lives up to its name.
Species names
SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH |
CHINESE |
EAST |
SOUTH | NORTH |
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| Pitta | ||||||||
Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Pitta phayrei |
Eared pitta Phayre's pitta | 双辫八色鸫 (雙辮八色鶇) 'double-pigtailed eight-coloured thrush' |
ツノヤイロチョウ (角八色鳥) tsuno ya-iro-chō 'horned eight-coloured-bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt nâu 'brown short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta nipalensis | Blue-naped pitta | 蓝枕八色鸫 (藍枕八色鶇) 'blue-naped eight-coloured thrush' |
アオエリヤイロチョウ (青襟八色鳥) ao-eri ya-iro-chō 'blue/green-collared eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt gáy xanh 'blue/green-naped short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta soror |
Blue-rumped pitta Blue-backed pitta | 蓝背八色鸫 (藍背八色鶇) 'blue-backed eight-coloured thrush' |
コシアオヤイロチョウ (腰青八色鳥) koshi-ao ya-iro-chō 'blue/green-rumped eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt đầu xám 'grey-headed short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta oatesi |
Rusty-naped pitta Fulvous pitta | 栗头八色鸫 (栗頭八色鶇) 'chestnut-headed eight-coloured thrush' |
锅巴雀 (鍋巴雀) 'pot-crust sparrow' (Yunnan) |
チャガシラヤイロチョウ (茶頭八色鳥) cha-gashira ya-iro-chō 'brown-headed eight-coloured-bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt đầu hung 'reddish-headed short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta cyanea |
Blue pitta | 蓝八色鸫 (藍八色鶇) 'blue eight-coloured thrush' |
ルリヤイロチョウ (瑠璃八色鳥 ~ 琉璃八色鳥) ruri ya-iro-chō 'lapis lazuli eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt đầu đỏ 'red-headed short-tail bird' |
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Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
| Pitta sordida |
Hooded pitta Green-breasted pitta | 绿胸八色鸫 (綠胸八色鶇) 'green-breasted eight-coloured thrush' (1, 2, 3, 4) 黑头八色鸫 (黑頭八色鶇) 'black-headed eight-coloured thrush' (5) |
ズグロヤイロチョウ (頭黒八色鳥) zu-guro ya-iro-chō 'black-headed eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt đầu đen 'black-headed short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta nympha |
Fairy pitta Chinese pitta Lesser blue-winged pitta |
仙八色鸫 (仙八色鶇) 'fairy eight-coloured thrush' |
(八色鸟) 八色鳥 'eight-coloured bird' |
蓝翅八色鸫 (藍翅八色鶇) 'blue-winged eight-coloured thrush' (6, 7) (Now applied to P. moluccensis) 八色轰鸟 (八色轟鳥) 'eight-coloured booming? bird' |
ヤイロチョウ (八色鳥) ya-iro-chō 'eight-coloured bird' |
팔색조 pal-ssaek-jjo 'eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt bụng đỏ 'red-bellied short-tail bird' |
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| Pitta moluccensis |
Blue-winged pitta Moluccan pitta Malay pitta |
蓝翅八色鸫 (藍翅八色鶇) 'blue-winged eight-coloured thrush'  Taxonomy |
紫蓝翅八色鸫 (紫藍八色鶇) 'purple blue-winged eight-coloured thrush' (7) |
ミナミヤイロチョウ (南八色鳥) minami ya-iro-chō 'southern eight-coloured bird' |
Chim Đuôi cụt cánh xanh 'blue/green-winged short-tail bird' |
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