Crimson-backed Sunbird (Leptocoma minima)
About the Crimson-backed Sunbird
The crimson-backed sunbird or small sunbird (Leptocoma minima) is a sunbird endemic to the Western Ghats of India. Like other sunbirds, they feed mainly on nectar although they take insects, especially to feed their young. They are tiny birds that are resident and are found in forests but are particularly attracted to gardens at the edge of the forest where people grow suitable flower-bearing plants. They usually perch while taking nectar. 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.
A real field recording of the Crimson-backed Sunbird. Press play and focus on the rhythm and pitch of each phrase.
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Our streaming copies are mirrored from the original xeno-canto file and transcoded to 96 kbps mono — a modification, so we note it here; the licence for each recording is named in its credit below.
1 recording on this page · licensed CC BY-SA ×1 · mirrored on this server, free for commercial reuse · recorded in India · xeno-canto lists 54 recordings for this species in total.
Similar species
- Black SunbirdLeptocoma aspasiaprofile
- Copper-throated SunbirdLeptocoma calcostethaprofile
- Purple-rumped SunbirdLeptocoma zeylonicarecording
- Purple-throated SunbirdLeptocoma sperataprofile
- Van Hasselt's SunbirdLeptocoma brasilianaprofile
Species grouped by shared genus, family and range.