The nominate race was described by Thomas C. Jerdon in 1840 from peninsular India. This form occurs along the Western Ghats and into the Nilgiris and Palni Hills. A darker race "travancoriensis" was described by Sidney Dillon Ripley in 1953 for the form possibly restricted south of the Palghat Gap. Subspecies "decaptus" described by Richard Meinertzhagen is found in Afghanistan, Pakistan and parts of northwestern India, while "jerdoni" is found along the Himalayan foothills east to Nepal. The population "yamethini" is somewhat disjunct and found in Myanmar. Several other races are described in the West Asian region and from Africa.