Souimanga Sunbird
Encyclopedia
The Souimanga Sunbird is a small passerine
bird
of the sunbird
family
, Nectariniidae. It is native to the islands of the western Indian Ocean
where it occurs on Madagascar
, the Aldabra Group
and the Glorioso Islands
.
is long, thin and curved. Male
s of the nominate subspecies have a metallic green head, back and throat. The breast is blackish with a more or less continuous red band while the belly is yellow and the wings and tail are brown. There are yellow tufts at the sides of the breast which become visible when the birds lift their wings in courtship display. Males presumably moult into a duller eclipse plumage by March-April, losing most of the metallic and red feathering for a few months. Female
s have grey-brown upperparts, a dull yellow belly and a grey throat and breast with darker markings. Juveniles
are similar to the adult females but the chin and throat are sometimes black and the upperparts may be more olive.
Abbott's Sunbirds (see below) are larger - 11 cm long with a 14 cm wingspan. The males have a broader red breastband and there is no yellow on the underparts which are dark brown (ssp.
abbotti) or blackish (ssp. buchenorum).
Male birds of the nominate group have wings of c.50–58 mm, tails of c.31–41 mm and 20–25 mm long bills. Females measure 10% less.
This bird has a chirruping flight call and a loud, hoarse alarm call. Only the male sings; a fast and scratchy song
with frequently repeated phrases.
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. The nominate subspecies C. s. sovimanga is found across most of Madagascar and on the Glorioso Islands. In south-western Madagascar it is replaced by C. s. apolis with C. s. aldabrensis on Aldabra
atoll, C. s. abbotti on Assumption Island
and C. s. buchenorum on Cosmoledo
and Astove. The forms abbotti and buchenorum are sometimes considered to be a separate species, Abbott's Sunbird, and would then be called Cinnyris abbotti.
This sunbird is one of those separated from the former catch-all genus
Nectarinia in Cinnyris.
and the Madagascar Cisticola
, Souimanga Sunbirds are the most common small landbirds across much of their range; ample stocks of the present species and the white-eye exist in the maybe 4 square km of habitat
in the Glorioso Islands
. The IUCN considers it a species of Least Concern.
The Souimanga Sunbird can be found in a variety of habitats from mountain forests to mangrove
s and scrubland as well as in parks, gardens and other human-modified ecosystem
s. They use their curved bill to probe flowers for nectar and also feed on insect
s and spider
s. They have few natural enemies and their nests are inaccessible to most predators.
lasts from August to March on Aldabra at least. The nest
is dome-shaped and has an entrance hole on the side. It is made of plant material such as grass stems, coconut
fibre and leaves. It is usually suspended from a branch about 1 to 2 metres above the ground but may be built on a building or in a sinkhole within eroded coral
. Two eggs
are laid and are incubated
for 13 to 14 days; they are whitish with reddish mottling. The young birds fledge
after 16 to 18 days. Nest-building and incubation of the eggs are done by the female who also plays a greater role than the male in feeding the chicks.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
of the 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,...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, Nectariniidae. It is native to the islands of the western Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
where it occurs on Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, the Aldabra Group
Aldabra Group
The Aldabra Group are part of the Outer Islands of the Seychelles, lying in the southwest of the island nation, 1000 kilometres from the capital, Victoria, on Mahé Island.The total land area of the Aldabra Group is 175.91 km²....
and the Glorioso Islands
Glorioso Islands
The Glorieuses or Glorioso Islands are a group of French islands and rocks totalling , at , in the northern Mozambique channel, about northwest of Madagascar. The Glorieuses have an Exclusive Economic Zone of...
.
Description
The Souimanga Sunbird is 10 cm long with a wingspan of 13 cm. The black billBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
is long, thin and curved. Male
Male
Male refers to the biological sex of an organism, or part of an organism, which produces small mobile gametes, called spermatozoa. Each spermatozoon can fuse with a larger female gamete or ovum, in the process of fertilization...
s of the nominate subspecies have a metallic green head, back and throat. The breast is blackish with a more or less continuous red band while the belly is yellow and the wings and tail are brown. There are yellow tufts at the sides of the breast which become visible when the birds lift their wings in courtship display. Males presumably moult into a duller eclipse plumage by March-April, losing most of the metallic and red feathering for a few months. Female
Female
Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male...
s have grey-brown upperparts, a dull yellow belly and a grey throat and breast with darker markings. Juveniles
Juvenile (organism)
A juvenile is an individual organism that has not yet reached its adult form, sexual maturity or size. Juveniles sometimes look very different from the adult form, particularly in terms of their colour...
are similar to the adult females but the chin and throat are sometimes black and the upperparts may be more olive.
Abbott's Sunbirds (see below) are larger - 11 cm long with a 14 cm wingspan. The males have a broader red breastband and there is no yellow on the underparts which are dark brown (ssp.
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
abbotti) or blackish (ssp. buchenorum).
Male birds of the nominate group have wings of c.50–58 mm, tails of c.31–41 mm and 20–25 mm long bills. Females measure 10% less.
This bird has a chirruping flight call and a loud, hoarse alarm call. Only the male sings; a fast and scratchy song
Bird song
Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs are distinguished by function from calls.-Definition:The distinction between songs and calls is based upon...
with frequently repeated phrases.
Taxonomy
There are five subspeciesSubspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
. The nominate subspecies C. s. sovimanga is found across most of Madagascar and on the Glorioso Islands. In south-western Madagascar it is replaced by C. s. apolis with C. s. aldabrensis on Aldabra
Aldabra
Aldabra, the world's second largest coral atoll, is in the Aldabra Group of islands in the Indian Ocean that form part of the Seychelles. Uninhabited and extremely isolated, Aldabra is virtually untouched by humans, has distinctive island fauna including the Aldabra Giant Tortoise, and is...
atoll, C. s. abbotti on Assumption Island
Assumption Island
Assumption Island is a small island located at in the Indian Ocean north of Madagascar and is part of the country of the Seychelles. It is located about 30 km southeast of the Aldabra Atoll and is part of the Aldabra Group. It is a single coral island which measures 11.07 km² in area and...
and C. s. buchenorum on Cosmoledo
Cosmoledo
Cosmoledo is an atoll of the Aldabra Group and belongs to the Outer Islands of the Seychelles. The atoll is 14.5 km long east-west, and 11.5 km north-south. The total land area is about 5.2 km², while the lagoon measures 145 km² in area . It is located at . The closest island is Astove Island,...
and Astove. The forms abbotti and buchenorum are sometimes considered to be a separate species, Abbott's Sunbird, and would then be called Cinnyris abbotti.
This sunbird is one of those separated from the former catch-all genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Nectarinia in Cinnyris.
Ecology
Together with the Malagasy White-eyeMalagasy White-eye
The Malagasy White-eye is a species of bird in the Zosteropidae family. It is found in Comoros, Madagascar, Mayotte, and Seychelles....
and the Madagascar Cisticola
Madagascar Cisticola
The Madagascar Cisticola is a species of bird in the cisticola family . It forms a superspecies with the closely related Zitting Cisticola and the Socotra Cisticola....
, Souimanga Sunbirds are the most common small landbirds across much of their range; ample stocks of the present species and the white-eye exist in the maybe 4 square km of habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
in the Glorioso Islands
Glorioso Islands
The Glorieuses or Glorioso Islands are a group of French islands and rocks totalling , at , in the northern Mozambique channel, about northwest of Madagascar. The Glorieuses have an Exclusive Economic Zone of...
. The IUCN considers it a species of Least Concern.
The Souimanga Sunbird can be found in a variety of habitats from mountain forests to mangrove
Mangrove
Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...
s and scrubland as well as in parks, gardens and other human-modified ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
s. They use their curved bill to probe flowers for nectar and also feed on insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s and spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s. They have few natural enemies and their nests are inaccessible to most predators.
Reproduction
The long breeding seasonBreeding season
The breeding season is the most suitable season, usually with favourable conditions and abundant food and water, for breeding among some wild animals and birds . Species with a breeding season have naturally evolved to have sexual intercourse during a certain time of year in order to achieve the...
lasts from August to March on Aldabra at least. The nest
Nest
A nest is a place of refuge to hold an animal's eggs or provide a place to live or raise offspring. They are usually made of some organic material such as twigs, grass, and leaves; or may simply be a depression in the ground, or a hole in a tree, rock or building...
is dome-shaped and has an entrance hole on the side. It is made of plant material such as grass stems, coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
fibre and leaves. It is usually suspended from a branch about 1 to 2 metres above the ground but may be built on a building or in a sinkhole within eroded coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
. Two eggs
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
are laid and are incubated
Avian incubation
Incubation refers to the process by which certain oviparous animals hatch their eggs, and to the development of the embryo within the egg. The most vital factor of incubation is the constant temperature required for its development over a specific period. Especially in domestic fowl, the act of...
for 13 to 14 days; they are whitish with reddish mottling. The young birds fledge
Fledge
Fledge is the stage in a young bird's life when the feathers and wing muscles are sufficiently developed for flight. It also describes the act of a chick's parents raising it to a fully grown state...
after 16 to 18 days. Nest-building and incubation of the eggs are done by the female who also plays a greater role than the male in feeding the chicks.