---
title: "Red-billed Leiothrix"
description: "Leiothrix lutea — Birds. The red-billed leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea) is a member of the family Leiothrichidae, native to southern China and the Himalayas."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/red-billed-leiothrix
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Red-billed Leiothrix

> Leiothrix lutea — Birds. The red-billed leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea) is a member of the family Leiothrichidae, native to southern China and the Himalayas.

- Scientific name: *Leiothrix lutea*
- Category: `birds` (Birds)
- Habitats: `forest` (Forest), `zoo` (Zoo & pets)
- iNaturalist observations: 3971
- Wikidata: [Q589245](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q589245)
- iNaturalist taxon: [15560](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/15560)

## Names

- en: Red-billed Leiothrix
- de: Sonnenvogel
- es: Ruiseñor del Japón
- fr: Léiothrix jaune
- it: Usignolo del Giappone
- nl: Japanse nachtegaal
- pt: Rouxinol-do-japão
- pl: Pekińczyk czerwonodzioby

## Countries with the most observations

US (1063), CN (683), IN (393), JP (281), FR (224), IT (215), ES (120), HK (93), RE (27), PT (26), NP (15), BT (12)

## Summary

The red-billed leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea) is a member of the family Leiothrichidae, native to southern China and the Himalayas. Adults have bright red bills and a yellowish-white ring around their eyes. Their backs are dull olive green, and they have a bright yellow-orange throat with a yellow chin; females are somewhat duller than males, and juveniles have black bills. It has also been introduced in various parts of the world, with small populations of escapees having existed in Japan since the 1980s. It has become a common cagebird and amongst aviculturists it goes by various names, including Pekin robin, Pekin…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-billed_leiothrix

## Photo

![Red-billed Leiothrix](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/red-billed-leiothrix/medium.jpg)

Photo: steve b · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/290952458

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/red-billed-leiothrix?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).