Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch

Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch

Sitta cinnamoventris

Silhouette: Alan and Elaine Wilson (Modified) · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Chitwan National Park

In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%

571 Verified sightings at Chitwan National Park From 2019 to 2026
2,398 In all 7 parks
February Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch

The chestnut-bellied nuthatch (Sitta cinnamoventris) is a species of bird belonging to the family Sittidae. It is found in the Indian subcontinent occurring in the countries of India, Tibet, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal.

It is found in subtropical or tropical forest, that are dry or moist forests, and in montane and lowland forests. This species is very similar to the Burmese nuthatch but it has a heavier bill, the crown and mantle are of the same shade. The wing and tail markings show contrasting markings; silvery-edge to primaries, blackish inner webs to tertials and tail with large white spots in the tail. Rasmussen and Anderton (2005) established the chestnut-bellied nuthatch is different from the Indian nuthatch and the Burmese nuthatch. White on ear coverts does not extend into chin unlike in the Indian nuthatch. Race almorae of Nepal and NW Himalayas has paler underparts; race koelzi of the eastern Himalayas has the female darker than in other races. Resident from Murree Hills to the Uttaranchal foothills extending to the Assam Valley, Arunachal Pradesh into the Lushai Hills. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:12

Thailand · 2015

© Ross Gallardy · XC295441 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:12

Nepal · 2023

© Greg Irving · XC845130 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:26

India · 2024

© Suniti Bhushan Datta · XC882038 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Royal Manas National Park 🇧🇹 Bhutan
~50%
2 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~40%
3 Jim Corbett National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
4 Royal Bardia National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~20%
5 Namdapha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
6 Manas National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
7 Kaziranga National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Dehradun 🇮🇳 India
~20%
2 Kathmandu 🇳🇵 Nepal
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch in Chitwan National Park?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch sighting in Chitwan National Park on a given day, based on 571 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 46th most-seen of the 367 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch in Chitwan National Park?

January and February

In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch in Chitwan National Park on a given day, against about 20% in August and December, the lowest months. Those are among Chitwan National Park's driest months, with about 25 mm of rain a month against 660 mm in July.

What time of day is best to see a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Chitwan National Park the best place to see a Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch?

2nd of 7

Of the 7 parks where we can rate Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch sightings, Chitwan National Park ranks 2nd at about 40%. The best odds are in Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan, about 50%). All parks ranked.

Where does the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch is recorded against all the birds logged in Chitwan National Park (571 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

← Back to Chitwan National Park