The red-fronted tinkerbird, Pogoniulus pusillus formerly known as the red-fronted tinker barbet is a small African barbet. Barbets are near passerine birds with bristles around the base of the bill. They have a world-wide tropical distribution. The red-fronted tinkerbird is a widespread and frequently common resident breeder in eastern South Africa, with a separate population from southern Sudan and Ethiopia south to central and eastern Tanzania. It is sometimes considered conspecific with its northern counterpart, the yellow-fronted tinkerbird, Pogoniulus chrysoconus.