Alternative names: Yellow-backed Sunbird; Goulpourah Sunbird; Eastern Crimson Sunbird
- Aethopyga siparaja
Identification
Crimson Sunbirds are tiny, only 11 cm long. They have medium-length thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations to their nectar feeding.
The adult male has a crimson breast and maroon back. The rump is yellow and the belly is olive.
The female has an olive-green back, yellowish breast and white tips to the outer tail feathers.
Distribution
Found from India east over the Himalayas, southwest China, Indochina, Malaysia to Sumatra, Borneo and Sulawesi (Indonesia).
Taxonomy
Vigors's Sunbird and Magnificent Sunbird were formerly included in this species.
Subspecies
There are 14 subspecies[1]:
- A. s. seheriae: Nepal to Assam, Bangladesh, Burma, south-western China and north-western Thailand
- A. s. labecula: Eastern Himalayas (Bhutan to Arundal Pradesh, Assam and Bangladesh)
- A. s. owstoni: Southern China (Naochow Island off Luichow Peninsula)
- A. s. tonkinensis: Southern China (south-eastern Yunnan) and north-eastern Vietnam
- A. s. mangini: South-eastern Thailand to central and southern Indochina
- A. s. insularis: Phu Quoc Island (off extreme southern Cambodia)
- A. s. cara: Southern Burma, Thailand and Mergui Archipelago
- A. s. trangensis: Peninsula Thailand, northern Malay Peninsula and adjacent Burma
- A. s. siparaja: Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and adjacent offshore islands
- A. s. nicobarica: Nicobar Islands
- A. s. heliogona: Java
- A. s. natunae: North Natuna Islands
- A. s. flavostriata: Northern Sulawesi
- A. s. beccarii: Central, south-eastern and southern Sulawesi; Butung, Muna and Kabaena islands
Habitat
Found in forest, scrub and gardens below 1,800.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds on nectar, insects and spiders.
Breeding
Two eggs or three eggs are laid in a suspended nest in a tree. In India it's parasitised by the Asian Emerald Cuckoo.
Flight
Like all sunbirds this species has a fast and direct flight with their short wings. They can hover like hummingbirds, but usually perch to feed most of the time.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Crimson Sunbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 29 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Crimson_Sunbird
