Copper-throated Sunbird vs Crimson-backed Sunbird

Copper-throated Sunbird

Leptocoma calcostetha

Tiny8 gWoodland

Copper-throated sunbirds are small sized birds ranging from 12.2–13 cm. A mature individual's wingspan averages 57.5mm, while their tails average 45.5mm. Adult males are predominantly black birds with contrasting shimmering green on their heads, shoulders, upper back and rump; as well as a copper colored throat with an outer ring of shimmering purplish-blue that extends down to the chest. They possess black legs and black eyes with no eye ring. Voice: Their songs are a melodious trill of fluctuating notes, sounding almost squeaky, broken up by brief pauses and a single sharp squeak. Their calls are squee- sound, that subtly decreases in pitch. No documentation could be found on copper-throated sunbirds' utilization of their vocalizations.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Rainer Breitling · CC BY 4.0

Crimson-backed Sunbird

Leptocoma minima

Tiny5 gForest

Crimson-backed sunbirds are tiny, even by sunbird standards, and are only 8 cm long. They have medium-length thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations for nectar feeding. The adult male is velvety red on the mantle and wing coverts and there is a broad red breast band. The crown is shiny green and there are pink-violet patches on the throat and rump. The underside from the breast below is yellowish. There is a black edge to the bib that separates the yellow of the underside.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by Sudipto Roy · Song · Molem National Park, Goa, India · CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Mike Prince from Bangalore, India · CC BY 2.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Copper-throated Sunbird and Crimson-backed Sunbird.