The Seychelles Sunbird is a small passerine from the family of sunbird

Sunbird

The sunbirds and spiderhunters are a family, Nectariniidae, of very small passerine birds. There are 132 species in 15 genera. The family is distributed throughout Africa, southern Asia and just reaches northern Australia. Most sunbirds feed largely on nectar, but also take insects and spiders,...

s. It is named after the French explorer Jean-Jacques Dussumier

Jean-Jacques Dussumier

Jean-Jacques Dussumier was a French voyager and merchant from Bordeaux. He is known as a collector of zoological species from South Eastern Asia and regions around the Indian Ocean between 1816 and 1840. These collections were later studied and classified by French zoologists such as Georges...

. It is native to the Seychelles

Seychelles

Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....

, where it is known as kolibri in Seychellois Creole

Seychellois Creole

Seychellois Creole, also known as Kreol or Seselwa, is the French-based creole language of the Seychelles. It shares official language status with English and French ....

. This bird is variously placed in the Cinnyris genus.

Description

It can reach a length from eleven to twelve centimetres. The plumage is dull grey. The male exhibits an iridescent violett-green patch on its throat and yellow tufts under its wings. The long slender bill is downcurved. The legs are black. The song of the males is surprisingly high pitched, noisy and harsh.

Distribution

It occurs on most of the larger granitic islands of the Seychelles Bank. It belongs to the endemic landbird species of the Seychelles which had adapted to human made environment changes in the best way. Its habitat consists of forests, gardens, scrubs, and mangroves from sea level to altitudes of 900 m.

Diet

On its preying for food it is very active, flying to hibiscus and other flowers and feed of nectar and insects.

Reproduction

Breeding is the entire year but the best time is September and October. One single egg is laid in a pear-shaped nest. It consists of grass and moss and is bound with spiderwebs. To protect the nest from cats and rats it hangs usually at the end of a twig.

External links

• Ministry of Environment Seychelles - The Endemic Species of Seychelles (Animals)
• Nature Seychelles - Seychelles Sunbird