Search

The Black-throated Sunbird Aethopyga saturata of Malaysia

on 14th March 2012

The Black-throated Sunbird (Aethopyga saturata) is resident in N and NE Indian subcontinent, SE Tibet and SW China. In SE Asia it is found in parts of Myanmar, Tenasserim, Thailand, Indochina, Peninsular Malaysia and Indonesia. In Malaysia the subspecies is wrayi (above), which according to Cheke, Mann & Allen (2001), is distinguished by “very little yellow on rump; breast sooty-black with yellowish tips to feathers. Belly, flanks and vent greyish olive-green; less red streaking on breast than petersi.”

Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS had a rare opportunity to study the male Malaysian subspecies on 13th January 2012 when he was in Cameron Highlands at an elevation of 1,500m ASL. The habitat was montane forest but the area where he encountered and photographed the male Black-throated Sunbird was under secondary growth with patches of cultivated gardens.

“This is a lovely, friendly sunbird of the highlands. I love it when birds show trust and come near – these came to within 2 meters of us, and I could not focus with my long lens at times,” wrote Amar. One female and two adult males were foraging in the same location. They were feeding on the nectar of canna flowers, piercing the base of the flowers to get at the nectar. Amar had the opportunity to study the adult males in detail.

According to Amar, “Although the bird is called “black-throated”, the adult male has a large metallic violet gorget (patch on the throat) (above left). Note how the throat looks dark (top) unless seen end on in good light. The metallic violet head and neck with delightful deep maroon-red mantel can be seen in the above image (right). Tail and feet are shown in the images below.”

Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS
Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
March 2012

Reference:
Cheke, R. A., Mann, C. F. & Allen, R. (2001). Sunbirds: A guide to the sunbirds, flowerpeckers, spiderhunters and sugarbirds of the world. New Haven & London: Yale University Press.

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

4 Responses

  1. Hi Amar,

    Lovely observation images.

    Iridecence plumages of sunbirds when captured in good lighting angles are delightful moments in photography and you’ve done it!
    Amazing what can be seen and discover that never got shown in field guides.

    Lighting plays tricks on photography and often deceive in bird identification of some of those more difficult species.

    Cheers!

    Daisy

Leave a Reply to An eventful trip to Cameron Highlands (roadkill and accident notwithstanding) - Page 5 Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories
Archives

Overall visits (since 2005)

Live visitors
679
13153
Visitors Today
51786282
Total
Visitors

Clustrmaps (since 2016)