Forest Double-collared Sunbird
Cinnyris fuelleborni
A small typical ‘double-collared’ sunbird. Male has a variable width red breast band, violet-purple rump, and pale olive belly. Female and immature are duller. Singles and pairs frequent montane forest, forest edge, and gardens. Eastern Miombo Sunbird is larger than Forest Double-collared, with a gray-brown (not olive) belly and bluish (not violet-purple) rump, and preferring broadleaved woodland to montane forest; Montane Double-collared is larger with a longer bill. Has a typical jumbled sunbird song.
Taxonomy
The forest double-collared sunbird was described by the German ornithologist Anton Reichenow in 1899 and given the binomial name Cinnyris fülleborni. He specified the type location as Kalinga in the Iringa Region of Tanzania. The specific name was chosen to honour the German physician and naturalist Friedrich Fülleborn.<p>This species was formerly considered as a subspecies of the eastern double-collared sunbird (Cinnyris mediocris) but was promoted to species status based on differences in plumage and genetics.
- Scientific name
- Cinnyris fuelleborni
- Authority
- Reichenow, 1899
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Cinnyris
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Mouse-colored Thistletail
Asthenes griseomurina
Little brown bird with a long, wispy tail found at high elevations near treeline in the Andes of southern Ecuador and northern Peru. White eye-ring, lack of an eyebrow, and brown (not chestnut) upperparts help separate it from White-chinned Thistletail; also note range. Mouse-colored is found alone or in pairs in dense shrubbery and stunted forest. Typical song is a rising, piping series that quickly accelerates into a trill.
Gray-breasted Sabrewing
Campylopterus largipennis
Large hummingbird of humid forests and semi-open habitats in Amazonia. Plain gray below and iridescent green above. Note large dark tail with white tips; also look for fairly heavy, slightly dropped bill and white spot behind eye. Occurs mostly in forest clearings or other semi-open habitats such as edges, tree fall gaps, and gardens. Forages at low- to mid-levels.
White-winged Snowfinch
Montifringilla nivalis
Distinctive long-tailed and long-winged inhabitant of high alpine zones; can be found slightly lower down in winter and around human habitation (towns, monasteries, ski resorts), where it can be quite approachable. Black-and-white wings striking in flight. In the breeding season, the bill is dark and the chin is black (bill yellowish and chin patch absent in nonbreeding season). The head is paler grey in winter. Feeds on seeds and insects. Song consists of buzzy warbles and chirps. Gives nasal “reep” calls and dry chatters.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.