- Aethopyga saturata
Identification
14–15 cm (5½-6 in)
Male:
- Metallic-purple head and nape
- Elongated central tail feathers
Female: is plain olive
Distribution
Asia: China, Tibet, Nepal, India, Eastern and Western Himalayas, Bangladesh, Bhutan
Southeast Asia: Indochina, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Malay Peninsula
Taxonomy
Ssp. saturata : Male in full breeding plumage
Photo by Alok Tewari
Sat Tal Forest-Alt. 5500 ft, Uttarakhand Himalayas, India, April-2017
Photo by Alok Tewari
Sat Tal Forest-Alt. 5500 ft, Uttarakhand Himalayas, India, April-2017
Subspecies
There are 10 subspecies[1]:
- A. s. saturata: Himalayas (Garhwal to Bhutan and south-eastern Tibet)
- A. s. assamensis: Bangladesh to Assam, northern Burma and south-western China (western Yunnan)
- A. s. galenae: Mountains of north-western Thailand
- A. s. petersi: Eastern Burma to northern Thailand, Laos, northern Vietnam and south-eastern Yunnan
- A. s. sanguinipectus: Hills of south-eastern Burma (Karenni and northern Tenasserim)
- A. s. anomala: Hills of southern peninsula Thailand (Phatthalung and Trang)
- A. s. wrayi: Mountains of Malay Peninsula (south of Trang)
- A. s. ochra: Southern Laos (Bolavens Plateau) and central Vietnam (Dakto)
- A. s. cambodiana: Mountains of south-western Cambodia
- A. s. johnsi: Langbian Plateau (southern Vietnam)
Habitat
Lower montane closed rainforests, from 600 to 1800 meters. Urban gardens.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds on flowers
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/
- Avibase
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black-throated Sunbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 20 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-throated_Sunbird
External Links
