| Microtarsus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Black-headed bulbul (Microtarsus melanocephalos) | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Pycnonotidae |
| Genus: | Microtarsus Eyton, 1839 |
| Type species | |
| Microtarsus melanoleucos Eyton, 1839 | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Microtarsus is agenus ofpasserine birds in the bulbul family,Pycnonotidae, that are found inSouth andSoutheast Asia.
The genusMicrotarsus was introduced in 1839 by the English naturalistThomas Campbell Eyton to accommodate a single species,Microtarsus melanoleucos Eyton, theblack-and-white bulbul. This is thetype species.[1][2] The species now placed in this genus were formerly included in the genusPycnonotus. Amolecular phylogenetic study of thebulbul family published in 2017 found thatPycnonotus waspolyphyletic.[3] In the revision to create monophyletic generaMicrotarsus was resurrected to contain theblack-headed bulbul that was previously placed inPycnonotus.[4] In 2025AviList adopted more inclusive genera and merged Brachypodius,Euptilotus andPoliolophus intoMicrotarsus.[5]
The genus contains seven species:[5]
| Image | Common name | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Puff-backed bulbul | Microtarsus eutilotus | Malay Peninsula,Sumatra,Bangka Island, andBorneo | |
| Black-and-white bulbul | Microtarsus melanoleucos | southernMalay Peninsula,Sumatra, Siberut Island, andBorneo | |
.jpg) | Yellow-wattled bulbul | Microtarsus urostictus | Philippines (exceptPalawan group,Mindoro, most ofWestern Visayas andSulu Archipelago) |
 | Grey-headed bulbul | Microtarsus priocephalus | southwestern peninsular India (southernMaharashtra andGoa to westernMysore andKerala) |
 | Black-headed bulbul | Microtarsus melanocephalos | east Bangladesh and northeast India through south China, Vietnam, Borneo, Java and Bali |
 | Andaman bulbul | Microtarsus fuscoflavescens | Andaman Islands |
.jpg) | Blue-wattled bulbul | Microtarsus nieuwenhuisii | Sumatra andBorneo |