Bird Guide

Black Sunbird vs Purple-rumped Sunbird

Black Sunbird (Leptocoma aspasia)

Black Sunbird

Leptocoma aspasia

Tiny8 gForest

It is a small songbird with a long down-curved bill and iridescent body. The black sunbird has a lifespan of approximately 3.6 years. The coloring of the birds differentiate between male and female. The male black sunbird is midnight black in color with an iridescent blue-purple stripe across the upper chest. There is a crown of lustrous green on the head, while the wings and tail are glossed blue. In many regions, the throat area is iridescent reddish-purple; however, moving northward it shifts towards a bluish sparkle (Moluccas and Kai Islands).

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Bruno Geisler · Public domain
Purple-rumped Sunbird (Leptocoma zeylonica)

Purple-rumped Sunbird

Leptocoma zeylonica

Tiny9 gForest

Purple-rumped sunbirds are tiny, at less than 10 centimetres (4 in) long. They have medium-length thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations for nectar feeding. Purple-rumped sunbirds are sexually dimorphic. The males have a dark maroon upperside with a blue-green crown that glistens at some angles, bright green shoulder patch and violet/purple rump patch which is generally hidden under the wings. The underparts are whitish with dark throat, maroon breast band and purple/violet patch in the throat which is visible in some angles.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Purple-rumped Sunbird
Recorded by Vihansith Kulatunga · Palaiyoothu, Trincomalee, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Chandu Bandi · CC BY 4.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Black Sunbird and Purple-rumped Sunbird.