The crimson sunbird (''Aethopyga siparaja'') is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of bird in the

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 ...

family which feed largely 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 ...

. They may also take

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

s, especially when feeding their young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings. Most species can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird, but usually perch to feed. It is the unofficial national bird of

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, as declared by the Nature Society Singapore.

Description

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, with black malar stripes. 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 Feathers are epidermis (zoology), epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both Bird, avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in ...

. In most of the range, males have a long green-blue tail, but ''A.s. nicobarica'' of the

Nicobar Islands The Nicobar Islands are an archipelago, archipelagic island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean. They are located in Southeast Asia, northwest of Aceh on Sumatra, and separated from Thailand to the east by the Andaman Sea. Located southeast of t ...

and the former subspecies ''A. vigorsii'' ( Western crimson sunbird) of the Western Ghats of India lack the long central tail feathers. Their

call Call or Calls may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * Call (poker), a bet matching an opponent's * Call, in the game of contract bridge, a bid, pass, double, or redouble in the bidding stage Music and dance * Call (band), from L ...

is ''chee-cheewee''. Crimson Sunbird feeding

Distribution and habitats

The crimson sunbird is a resident breeder in tropical southern

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, through

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and

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 ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

. Two or three

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...

s are laid in a suspended

nest A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold Egg (biology), eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of ...

in a tree. This species occurs in

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

and cultivated areas.

Gallery

File:Aethopyga siparaja seheriae Panchkhal Valley 01.jpg File:Aethopyga siparaja seheriae Panchkhal Valley 02.jpg Image:Aethopyga siparaja.jpg Image:Aethopyga_vigorsii_1.jpg Image:Aethopyga_vigorsii_2.jpg File:Aethopyga siparaja seheriae Panchkhal Valley 03.jpg File:Aethopyga siparaja seheriae Panchkhal Valley 04.jpg

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q73760

crimson sunbird The crimson sunbird (''Aethopyga siparaja'') is a species of bird in the sunbird family which feed largely on nectar. They may also take insects, especially when feeding their young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings. Most species ca ...

Birds of Indomalaya Birds of Yunnan