Crimson Sunbird

Aethopyga siparaja

Species Index

8 January 2014

Possible regional races (polytypic)

-Aethopyga siparaja nicobarica Hume 1873 Stray Feathers 1 no.5 p412

-Aethopyga siparaja labecula (Horsfield) 1840 PZS["1839"] Pt7 no.82 p167

-Aethopyga siparaja seheriae (Tickell) 1833 Jour.Asiat.Soc.Bengal 2 no.23 p577

-Aethopyga siparaja vigorsii (Sykes) 1832 PZS Pt2 no.18 p98,99

Historical notes on Crimson Sunbird Aethopyga siparaja

This beautiful Honey-sucker is found all along the Himalayan range, and in Central India, as far south as N. L. 21^o, if Tickell's bird be identical with this species rather than the next [Aethopyga siparaja vigorsii-Ed]; also in Assam, Sylhet, and the Burmese provinces [Aethopyga siparaja labecula-Ed]. I believe that it does not ascend the Himalayas to any great height, not above 2000 or 2500 feet.

In Winter this beautiful Sunbird is found alike in forest, thin jungle, cultivated lands and in gardens and orchards. Where there are flowers. flowering shrubs or other insect attractions there will the Yellow-backed Sunbird assuredly be found, clinging to the stem of the flowers and rapidly inserting its bill like a bee, first into one, then into another of the flowers, reaching the honey and also eating the many insects engaged in a like repast. Sometimes it will hover for seconds in front of a flower as it feeds on its contents, sometimes but for a moment before darting off at wonderful speed, only to return again to the same flower or to one a few inches away. Where there are no flowers it hunts the under surface of leaves for insects and I have also seen it feeding on small spiders. When the breeding season commences it resorts tar more to forest and far less to gardens, though it never quite deserts the latter. The note is a sharp trill and is uttered on the wing; males when feeding in company, as they often do, constantly make this call to one another, but they are very pugnacious as well as gregarious and their social clubs often break up in disorder over some trivial dispute. They feed most often on flowers and bushes near the ground but I have seen them feeding in the flowers of the cotton-tree over 100 feet up.