The brown-throated sunbird (''Anthreptes malacensis''), also known as the plain-throated sunbird, is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

in the family

Nectariniidae Sunbirds and spiderhunters make up the family Nectariniidae of passerine birds. They are small, slender passerines from the Old World, usually with downward-curved bills. Many are brightly coloured, often with iridescent feathers, particularly i ...

. It is found in a wide range of semi-open habitats in

south-east Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia i ...

, ranging from

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

to the

Lesser Sundas The Lesser Sunda Islands (, , ), now known as Nusa Tenggara Islands (, or "Southeast Islands"), are an archipelago in the Indonesian archipelago. Most of the Lesser Sunda Islands are located within the Wallacea region, except for the Bali pr ...

and west

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The

grey-throated sunbird The grey-throated sunbird (''Anthreptes griseigularis'') is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found in a wide range of semi-open wooded habitats in the northern and eastern part of the Philippines. It is often considered a subs ...

found in the remaining part of the Philippines is often considered a

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

of the brown-throated sunbird, but the two differ consistently in measurements and

plumage Plumage () is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can b ...

, and there is no evidence of

intergradation In zoology, intergradation is the way in which two distinct subspecies are connected via areas where populations are found that have the characteristics of both. There are two types of intergradation: primary and secondary intergradation. Primary ...

between them.

Taxonomy

The following

are recognised: * ''A. m. malacensis'' (

Scopoli Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (sometimes Latinized as Johannes Antonius Scopolius) (3 June 1723 – 8 May 1788) was an Italian physician and naturalist. His biographer Otto Guglia named him the "first anational European" and the "Linnaeus of the Au ...

, 1786) –

mainland Southeast Asia Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

and satellite islands, most of

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

aside from the north,

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

and

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

* ''A. m. anambae'' Oberholser, 1917 –

Anambas Islands Anambas Islands Regency () is an island regency (Indonesia), regency in the Riau Islands, Riau Islands Province, Indonesia, located in the Natuna Sea. The regency consists of 255 islands, including five List of outlying islands of Indonesia, out ...

* ''A. m. erixanthus'' Oberholser, 1932 –

Natuna Islands Natuna Regency is an islands regency located in the northernmost part of the Province of Riau Islands, Indonesia. It contains at least 154 islands, of which 127 of them are reported as uninhabited. This archipelago, with a land area of 1,978.4 ...

* ''A. m. bornensis''

Riley Riley may refer to: Businesses * Riley (brand), British sporting goods brand founded in 1878 * Riley Motor, British motorcar and bicycle manufacturera 1890–1969 * Riley Technologies, American auto racing constructor and team, founded by Bob ...

, 1920 – north Borneo * ''A. m. mjobergi''

Bangs Bang, bang!, or bangs may refer to: Products * M1922 Bang rifle, a US semi-automatic rifle designed by Søren Hansen Bang * Bang, a List of model car brands, model car brand * Bang (beverage), an energy drink Geography * Bang, Central African ...

& Peters, JL, 1927 – Maratua * ''A. m. paraguae'' Riley, 1920 –

Palawan Palawan (, ), officially the Province of Palawan (; ), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of . The capital and largest c ...

* ''A. m. heliolusius'' Oberholser, 1923 –

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...

* ''A. m. wiglesworthi''

Hartert Ernst Johann Otto Hartert (29 October 1859 – 11 November 1933) was a widely published German people, German ornithologist. Life and career Hartert was born in the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg on 29 October 1859. In July 1891, he married ...

, 1902 –

Sulu Archipelago The Sulu Archipelago ( Tausug: Kapū'-pūan sin Sūg Sulat Sūg: , ) is a chain of islands in the Pacific Ocean, in the southwestern Philippines. The archipelago forms the northern limit of the Celebes Sea and southern limit of the Sulu Se ...

* ''A. m. iris''

Parkes Parkes may refer to: * Sir Henry Parkes (1815–1896), Australian politician, one of the earliest and most prominent advocates for Australian federation Named for Henry Parkes * Parkes, New South Wales, a regional town * Parkes Observatory, a radi ...

, 1971 –

Sibutu Islands The Sibutu Islands are an archipelago in the southern Philippines. The islands are geographically and ethnologically part of Borneo. The archipelago consists of the following inhabited islands; Sibutu, Tumindao, Sitangkai, Omapui, Sipankot, and Bul ...

* ''A. m. chlorigaster'' Sharpe, 1877 –

Western Visayas Western Visayas (; ; ) is an Regions of the Philippines, administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VI. The region comprises the islands of Panay and Guimaras Island, Guimaras. It consists of five Provinces of the ...

* ''A. m. cagayanensis'' Mearns, 1905 –

Mapun Mapun, officially the Municipality of Mapun (), is a municipality in the province of Tawi-Tawi, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 30,038 people. It was formerly known as Cagayan de Sulu until 1984, then as Cagay ...

* ''A. m. heliocalus'' Oberholser, 1923 – Sangihe and Siau * ''A. m. celebensis'' Shelley, 1878 –

Sulawesi Sulawesi ( ), also known as Celebes ( ), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the List of islands by area, world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Min ...

and satellite islands * ''A. m. extremus'' Mees, 1966 – Banggai and Sula * ''A. m. convergens'' Rensch, 1929 –

Lombok Lombok, is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is rou ...

Alor Alor may refer to: South Asia *Aror or Alor, medieval name of city of Sukkur, Sindh, Pakistan *Alor, Bastar, a village in Bastar district, Chhattisgarh, India Southeast Asia * Alor Archipelago, Indonesia **Alor Island, Indonesia ** Alor Strai ...

* ''A. m. rubrigena'' Rensch, 1931 –

Sumba Sumba (; ), natively also spelt as Humba, Hubba, Suba, or Zuba (in Sumba languages) is an Indonesian island (part of the Lesser Sunda Archipelago group) located in the Eastern Indonesia and administratively part of the East Nusa Tenggara pro ...

Description

The brown-throated sunbird is a relatively large, heavy

sunbird Sunbirds and spiderhunters make up the family Nectariniidae of passerine birds. They are small, slender passerines from the Old World, usually with downward-curved bills. Many are brightly coloured, often with iridescent feathers, particularly i ...

with a thick

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pl ...

. Measuring some in length, it has a mass of , with males averaging slightly larger than females. Like most sunbirds, the male brown-throated sunbird is more colourful than the female. The male has iridescent green and purple upperparts with chestnut on the wing-coverts and scapulars; it is primarily yellow below. The female is olive-green above and yellowish below.

Behaviour

The brown-throated sunbird primarily feeds on

nectar Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by Plant, plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollination, pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to an ...

, but it will also take small fruits and berries. Juveniles are fed with insects.

Gallery

Image:Brown-throated Sunbird male.jpg, Male Image:Brown-throated_Sunbird_female.jpg, Female Image:IAnthreptes malacensis heliocalus,adult male.JPG , male ''A. m. heliocalus'' Image:Anthreptes malacensis heliocalus, male.JPG , adult ''A. m. heliocalus'' Image:Plain-throated Sunbird.jpg , male Image:Anthreptes malacensis heliocalus, female.JPG , adult ''A. m. heliocalus'' Image:Anthreptes malacensis heliocalus, adult female.JPG , adult ''A. m. heliocalus'' Image:Burung-madu Kelapa.JPG , Juvenile, female ''A. m. heliocalus'' Image:Anthreptes malacensis heliocalus, juvenile.JPG , juvenile ''A. m. heliocalus''

References

* Cheke, Robert A., Mann, Clive F., & Allen, Richard. (2001). ''Sunbirds: A Guide to the Sunbirds, Flowerpeckers, Spiderhunters and Sugarbirds of the World.'' Christopher Helm, London. pp. 184–186.

brown-throated sunbird The brown-throated sunbird (''Anthreptes malacensis''), also known as the plain-throated sunbird, is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found in a wide range of semi-open habitats in south-east Asia, ranging from Myanmar to the ...

Birds of Southeast Asia

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Nectariniidae-stub