Avian sighting July 2026 - Temminck's Sunbird

This is a much sort after sunbird in low land swampy forest like Panti KotaTinggi or at hill plains forest commonly Relau-Poring. It can be enticed to come out by calling of rowdy bird call. It is less common than the Crimson sunbird 

Wanting to get the Van Hasselt's Sunbird of  coastal Endau Rompin side. That is another story to tell ....... 

 

Avian Sighting- Purple-throated Sunbird

One of my elusive bird that I have yet to shoot in the wild is this  Purple Throated Sunbird. The opportunity came at Cyberjaya in the month of March 2017

SUNBIRD 11/11 - Ruby-cheeked Sunbird

Ruby- cheeked Sunbird

OK this is the last of the sunbird subspecies you can see in Malaysia. Forgot to post it. Got it few years back but never see it  since. This is one of the most colorful sunbird that I have encountered. I was taken by surprised when a group of 3 of them flew in. So many times I encountered sunbird as close as 10-15 feet away. They somewhat do not feel intimidated by human or r they curious with us guys with big camera lenses?

The male I saw have a full length dark band from its nostril to its nape. Its head and crown is usually is green but the one I shot was more toward turquiose The breast is distinctly orange while the belly is yellow. Sunbird are monogamous . Often if you  see one, its partner can also be around. Sometimes a juvenile or two will tag along until itself finds a partner.

They are after nectar amongst the budding flowers or looking for grub I really not sure. Their beak are not as curvy as the others subspecies a whopping 170 of them in the world! They do feed on caterpillars and grub they find on branches and foliage.

 

SUNBIRD 10/11 - Copper-throated Sunbird

 

The Copper-throated Sunbird is found mainly in mangroves, but also coconut groves and coastal scrubland. I got mine in Pulau Indah Selangor after a tip off from JT. So the Ruby-cheeked Sunbird  will be my last to shoot; I tot I have  shot it before........hmmm.
           

Sunbirds eat insects but are best known for sipping on nectar. They have a typical long, slender, decurved bill with fine serration along the margins of both mandibles. Their tongue is tubular and deeply cleft.

Although it is said that they cannot hover like a hummingbird (which is found only in tropical Americas), the sunbird can hover briefly. But they do prefer to cling to a nearby stem or vegetation as they sip on nectar. They may "steal" the nectar by piercing through the base of the flower (thus avoiding payment of pollinating services in exchange for the nectar).

 

 

It has this rapid twitter similar to Crimson Sunbird but lower; also a long very high-pitched trill. Will show it in video. It has this darting & sallying flight.

 

Like other Sunbirds, the Copper-throated male is more colourful than the female. In fact, females of most species of Sunbirds look very similar.It is large for a sunbird (14cm), bill thin and obviously decurved; appears all black in poor light. In good light, the male  wears a green cap; copper throat and upper breast; dark purple lower breast and belly. Upperpart metallic green, tail blackish. In contrast the female looks like other sunbird females but has a greyish head. Upperparts dark olive; throat and under tail coverts greyish; breast and belly greenish yellow; tail black with bold white tips. Juvenile is like female but tail is brown.           The Copper-throated male has two bright yellow tufts on his sides (See pic3), best seen when his wings are open.

 

Males are particularly territorial and may defend a good feeding site from other Sunbirds. This I notice when another male approaches the flowering shrubs nearby the one that I was shooting was very vocal and chase the other away.

Sunbirds form monogamous pairs. The Copper-throated Sunbirds breed in April-August.

The female builds the nest, while the male escorts her as she finds and collects nesting materials. She uses fine twigs and leaves to construct a pear-shaped nest with an entrance hole at the top. The nest is usually built in a mangrove tree, 2-6 ft above the ground facing water (a pond or the sea). The eggs are pale brown with fine markings forming a band around the larger end. Both parents raise the young.

 

SUNBIRD 7/11 - Olive-backed Sunbird

 Olive-backed Sunbird
This is Sunbird no 7. The most likely seen amongst all. Urbanised I guess. The back is olive brown in color. It is also the smallest one 12cm. They are quite approachable to a distance of 10 ft. Usually found in pairs and they are territorial in the sense that if another sunbird comes to the tree they are occupying; the female always chase the other away......or is it jealousy... ... I wonder

 

 

SUNBIRD 9/11 - Temminck's Sunbird

 

Temminck's Sunbird

I was rather surprised to see it pop out from nowhere at the open ground at the end of the Sg Perdik recreational park. I was actually there looking for the Malayan Night Heron which was sighted early December. I think it is still there as upon arriving in the early morning something heron-like flew across the trail. A lot of Broadbill activities here today in the wet and cool trail. As usual plenty of leeches.

The Temminck's Sunbird (Aethopyga temminckii) is fairly common and is found up to 1800 m altitude in Borneo, Sumatra, peninsula Malaysia, and south west Thailand in tropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes.

It is named after Dutch aristocrat and zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck,The male Temminck's Sunbird is 12.5 cm (male) long, . The longer-tailed male is mostly scarlet, except for a greyish belly, and yellow and purple bands between the back and tail. The female is drab olive, except for rufous fringes to the wing and tail feathers. I got the female in Bkt Tinggi, Pahang.

 

With its curvy beak rufous wing and tail I believe this is the Temminck's Sunbird. It can be found from lowland broadleaved evergreen forest upto 1,500 odd metre high. It can also be sighted in Cameron Highlands and in Belum Perak.

Size wise it is 10cm long smaller than the male which has a longer tail. It favors nectar and insects and even spider. It is an uncommon bird to see in Peninsula Hopefully I will see the male soon in its splendor red. Well got to wait for the mating season in Feb-March.

Latest sighting Ipoh Kek Lock Tong

SUNBIRD 8/11 - Purple-throated Sunbird

Purple-throated Sunbird

Yet to see it in the lowland forest fringes, mangroves and seaside undergrowth in Malaysia upto 1,200m. This photo shot in Yogya bird market. In Peninsula Malaysia there is record sighting in Pedu Lake Kedah

A very small bird of 10cm. The male have this effervescent green crown with deep red belly and the rump is aqua bluish. The purple throat can be very darkish depending on the angle you look at it.

Nesting season is from Feb- July with a locket nest hanging with a side opening from height of 2m if you find one. Usually a pair of eggs is laid.

 

 

In month of Feb 2017 got my first Purple Throated Sunbird in the wild in Lake Gardens in Cyberjaya. I will definately  try to get better shots than the record shots here .................

 

SUNBIRD 6/11 - Purpled-naped Sunbird

 

Purple-naped Sunbird

 

Another surprise lifer in Taman Rekreasi Ampang. The Purple-naped Sunbird was nursing its oversized junior in the month of late June/July. Earlier thought it was the Yellow-vented Flowerpecker but the blue purple naped and upper tail covert tells otherwise

Size less than 6 inches but the juvenile is larger and heavier looking. The latter was chirping away chasing calling for more food and the poor dad got to work doubly hard to please it. Mum is no where in sight Poor fellow!

SUNBIRD 5/11 - Brown-throated

Brown-throated Sunbird

 

Sunbird are abundant in Malaysia. Usually the male is the colourful ones of the 7-8 species. The female is duller or just call it plain jane.

Ooops this is the Ruby-cheeked........................

SUNBIRD 3/11 - Red-throated Sunbird

 

 Red-throated sunbird


Madi mentioned that he had sighted a probable Red-throated Sunbird in Kemensah I thought he may had mistaken it, the more common Brown-throated. Last weekend I was back in Kemensah to see whether the Javan Frogmouth is still around I wandered deep into a new route which opened into a clearing. There a ficus tree was fruiting which attracted an array of bulbuls, sunbirds, a lone Green-backed Flycatcher and a pair of lovely Cuckoo Dove.

The Red-throated Sunbird have a paler yellow breast and more maroon face and wing. It's size is also slightly smaller than the Brown-throated.

SUNBIRD 4/11 - Crimson Sunbird

 
 Crimson Sunbird

I always wanted to get this bird and I was lucky to sight it at Kek Lok Si Temple hill top road just below the KuanYin statue venue. The better place to see it in the Penang botanical garden.

The Crimson Sunbird, Aethopyga siparaja is a small passerine bird (11cm) which feed mainly on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding 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 most of the time. 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. The rump is yellow and the belly is olive. The female on the other hand is plain with an olive-green back, yellowish breast and white tips to the outer tail feathers. Their call is sharp "chit-chit wee".

By the way Crimson Sunbird is the national bird of Singapore.

 

My latest sighting was in Kek Lok Tong Ipoh early 2013.

SUNBIRD 2/11 - Black-throated Sunbird

Black-throated Sunbird

 

 A very common bird in Cameron Highland. With all the blooming flowers all over town; these sunbirds in pairs can be approached in close proximity. Because of their diet of nectar they are active all day long. Their favorite tree is the Bottlebrush

 

 

Its length is just a finger long 10-13cm. It can be differentiated from the Purple throated from its abdomen color. The latter has crimson breast merging into black. The female black throated is the plainer half.