Beautiful Sunbird Cinnyris pulchellus Scientific name definitions

Taxonomic note: Lump. This account is a combination of multiple species accounts originally published in HBW Alive. That content has been combined and labeled here at the subspecies level. Moving forward we will create a more unified account for this parent taxon. Please consider contributing your expertise to update this account.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Male 14–17 cm, 5.6–10.2 g; female 9–11 cm, 5.6–8 g; unsexed 5.3–6.7 g. Male breeding has head, upperparts and upperwing coverts bright metallic green, uppertail coverts tipped bright metallic green, this merging to blue near dark brown bases; tail blue-black, inner rectrices narrowly fringed metallic green, central rectrices fringed broadly with metallic green at base but narrowly along elongated section (which projects 55–65 mm); remiges dark brown; chin to upper breast metallic green with golden reflections, lower border with narrow metallic blue band; scarlet patch in centre of breast, yellow feather tips at sides of breast, abdomen bright metallic green, undertail coverts more metallic blue, thighs blackish brown, vent, axillaries and underwing coverts black; iris black or dark brown; bill and legs black. Male non-breeding (eclipse plumage; sometimes omitted in equatorial regions) is similar to female, gray-brown above and dull yellow below, but wing and tail feathers black, elongated rectrices sometimes (not always) retained, metallic green feathers on chin, throat, wing-coverts and a few on rump and uppertail coverts retained (sometimes those on chin and throat lost, leaving pale throat patch). Female lacks iridescence, has crown to rump yellow-tinged dull brown, darker brown on ear-coverts, wing-coverts and tail-coverts, narrow white or pale yellow supercilium behind eye, black-brown tail slightly glossed bronze-green or bluish, rectrices narrowly tipped white, outer pair more broadly so and with white on edge of outer web, remiges and greater wing-coverts dark brown, all with pale olive edges, other wing-coverts, alula and tertials edged pale brown; chin and throat whitish, underparts yellow-tinged, with variable indistinct blackish-brown mottling on breast and flanks, white undertail coverts, axillaries and underwing-coverts tinged yellow; bare parts as male. Juvenile male as female, but with vertical black streak on throat and upper chest flanked by cream moustachial stripes, and duller below; immature female as adult, but occasionally with brighter yellow underparts, and lacks black throat of immature male.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Male 15–17 cm, 7–9.5 g; female 11 cm, 7.1–9.7 g. Male breeding has head, upperparts and upperwing coverts bright metallic green, uppertail-coverts tipped bright metallic green, this merging to blue near dark brown bases; tail blue-black, inner rectrices narrowly fringed metallic green, central rectrices fringed broadly with metallic green at base but narrowly along elongated section (which projects 28–45 mm); remiges dark brown; chin to upper breast metallic green with golden reflections, lower border with narrow metallic blue band; broad scarlet patch in centre of breast, yellow feather tips at sides of breast, abdomen black, undertail coverts with metallic green-blue tips, thighs blackish brown, vent, axillaries and underwing-coverts black; iris black or dark brown; bill and legs black. Has longer bill (20–22 mm) than C. p. pulchellus (14–19 mm). Male non-breeding (eclipse plumage) is apparently undescribed. Female lacks iridescence, has crown to rump yellow-tinged dull brown, darker brown on ear-coverts, wing-coverts and tail-coverts, narrow white or pale yellow supercilium behind eye, black-brown tail slightly glossed bronze-green or bluish, rectrices narrowly tipped white, outer pair more broadly so and with white on edge of outer web, remiges and greater wing-coverts dark brown, all with pale olive edges, other wing-coverts, alula and tertials edged pale brown; chin and throat whitish, underparts yellow-tinged, with variable dusky streaking on breast and flanks, white undertail coverts, axillaries and underwing-coverts tinged yellow; bare parts as male. Juvenile not known to differ from that of C. p. pulchellus.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Sometimes placed in genus Chalcomitra. Hitherto treated as conspecific with C. p. melanogastrus; see that species (below). Proposed subspecies aeger (described from Aïr, in Niger) and lucidipectus (from Wad Medani, on Blue Nile in east-central Sudan) considered synonyms.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Hitherto treated as conspecific with C. p. pulchellus, but differs in its broader yellow-bordered red breastband (effect size 2.33, score 2); matt black vs reflectant green or blue-and-green lower belly (3); longer bill and wing (effect size for bill 1.55, score 1); shorter tail projections (effect size −2.53, score 2); but voices very similar (1 Boesman, P. (2016). Notes on the vocalizations of Beautiful Sunbird (Cinnyris pulchellus). HBW Alive Ornithological Note 339. In: Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Close ).

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Mauritania, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau east to Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia, south to Sierra Leone, central Nigeria, northern Cameroon, Central African Republic, South Sudan, extreme northeastern DR Congo, Uganda, and northwestern Kenya.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Western, central, and southern Kenya and Tanzania.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Dry thorn savannas, riversides and gardens, but usually near water, e.g., semi-permanent rivers and adjacent pans; also in mangrove scrub (e.g., in Gambia and Guinea-Bissau) and along beaches at coast (e.g., in Sierra Leone). To 1530 m in Ethiopia, but usually below 1300 m in Kenya and Uganda.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Inhabits semi-arid bush, wooded grassland and gardens; at 400–1900 m, but mostly 700–1300 m.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Some resident throughout range, except in far north. Complex movement patterns apparently related to flowering of mistletoes (Loranthaceae), e.g., Tapinanthus globiferus in Chad. Populations in southern parts of western Africa travel north to breed February–April, returning south in September–October; in northern part of range, some populations present in dry season migrate south at start of rains, breeding south of dry-season quarters. In Nigeria, reaches further south in September–March and furthest north in April–October. Recorded as vagrant in Rwanda.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Apparently largely resident, but reported to move to higher elevations in central Kenya during periods of severe drought.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Nectar and small flowers (e.g., of Acacia); insects, and spiders (Araneae). Forages singly, occasionally in small groups. Visits flowers of genera Acacia, Albizia, Aloe, Bauhinia, Bombax, Bougainvillea, Calotropis, Canna, Combretum, Commiphora, Crataeva, Cyanometra, Delonix, Gmelina, Hibiscus, Ipomoea, Jacaranda, Lantana, Lonchocarpus, Manihot, Mitragyna, Morelia, Moringa, Quisqualis, Tamarindus, Tectona, Terminalia, Vitellaria, Vitex, Ziziphus, and mistletoes (Loranthaceae); observed also at Carica papaya and Leptadenia heterophylla. May forage within 1 m of ground. Invertebrates sometimes taken from windows or eaves of houses.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Diet and foraging do not appear to have been described in any detail, but are assumed to be similar to those of C. p. pulchellus. Observed alone or in small groups. Visits flowers in gardens.

Vocal Development

Begging call of juvenile is a faint, buzzy note repeated incessantly tzee..tzee..tzee-tzee...

Vocal Array

Long song. A long nervous phrase of jumbled twittering, alternating warbles and unmelodious staccato notes, continuously changing pitch from high to low and back. Typically has a duration of 30 seconds or more.

Short song. A short phrase starting with a few staccato notes followed by a more melodic high-pitched warble. Typical phrase duration about 2.5‒3.0 s. Phrases are repeated every few seconds with slight variations.

Chatter. A long scolding series of fast repeated short notes che-che-che-che-che.... at a pace of about 6‒8 notes/s. Occasionally, such chatter is alternated with a Short song phrase.

Rattle. Somewhat similar to Chatter, but notes are shorter, lower-pitched, more nasal, and uttered at a faster pace.

Tsip. A short high-pitched descending tsip repeated at intervals.

Geographic Variation

The two song types of both subspecies are at least structurally very similar, and it would require an in depth analysis to determine if there are any consistent differences (1 Boesman, P. (2016). Notes on the vocalizations of Beautiful Sunbird (Cinnyris pulchellus). HBW Alive Ornithological Note 339. In: Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Close ). Also Chatter, Rattle and Tsip call have been documented for both subspecies.

Phenology

In northern Nigeria, newly arrived males in breeding plumage establish territories in April by singing vehemently and chasing away rivals (2 Fry, C. H., S. Keith, and E. K. Urban, Editors (2000). The Birds of Africa. Volume 6. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). In western Africa, recordings of song are available at least from December to June, in eastern Africa mainly from August till December.

Daily Pattern of Vocalizing

Mainly vocal during the morning and to a lesser extent again in late afternoon.

Places of Vocalizing

Male often sings from a prominent perch on top of a bush or small tree, but also vocalizes from more shady places on twigs below the canopy. During display, simultaneously flicks wings and fans tail (2 Fry, C. H., S. Keith, and E. K. Urban, Editors (2000). The Birds of Africa. Volume 6. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ).

Sex Differences

Little information. Long and Short song typically uttered by male. Female call is said to be a single or disyllabic note distinct from male (3 Cheke, R. A., C. F. Mann, and R. Allen (2001). Sunbirds: A Guide to the Sunbirds, Flowerpeckers, Spiderhunters and Sugarbirds of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Social Content and Presumed Functions of Vocalizations

Song undoubtedly is used for territorial defense and mate attraction, but it is not clear whether Long and Short song have a different function. Rattle call has been associated with alarm, while Tsip note presumably a contact call.

None documented.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Breeds during rainy seasons; laying recorded in June–October in Mauritania and Senegal, June–March in Gambia, July in Mali, June in Burkina Faso, April and August–September in Ghana, June–July in Niger, February and June–October in Nigeria, July–August in Chad, July in Eritrea, April–October in Ethiopia, March and June–October in Sudan, February–March, May–June and August–October in Uganda, and July in northern Kenya. Polygamy suspected, as male may court two females simultaneously. Unknown whether single- or multi-brooded. Male displays to female by spreading wings and tail. Territorial; males display to each other from treetops, showing colors of underparts in upright pose, flick wings, and jerk fanned tail from side to side. Nest purse-shaped (12 cm high, 5 cm wide, internal depth 3.5 cm), with central entrance (2.5 cm in diameter), most without both porch and “beard” but either may be present occasionally; made variously of fibres, bark, twigs, grass, leaves, cobwebs, vegetable down, plant stems, feathers, lichen and snakeskin, lined with feathers or vegetable down, sometimes decorated with lichen, suspended 1–5·5 m above ground from tree, e.g., Acacia sp., Bauhinia reticulata, Citrus sp., Tamarindus indica and Ziziphus mauritiana. Clutch 1–2 eggs (usually two), slightly glossy, variously green, blue-gray, brown or gray-white with dark gray, brown or ashy, sometimes dark sepia, streaks and blotches, size 15.1–18 mm × 9.9–12.4 mm; incubation of eggs and brooding of chicks by female alone; no other information.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Breeds during rainy seasons; laying recorded in May–June in Kenya, and December–July in Tanzania. Male displays to female by spreading wings and tail. Territorial; males display to each other from treetops, showing colours of underparts in upright pose, flick wings, and jerk fanned tail from side to side. Nest purse-shaped (30 cm long), with central entrance and “beard”; made variously of dry leaves and vegetable matter, lined with feathers and woven with cobwebs, suspended 1 m above ground in Acacia mellifera. Clutch 1–2 eggs, bright green with violet-gray spots and blotches, and purple-black S-shaped marks, the former concentrated at pointed end and latter towards blunt end, size 16–17 mm × 11–12 mm; incubation of eggs and brooding of chicks by female alone; no other information.

Beautiful Sunbird (Beautiful)

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Common (even locally abundant) throughout most of range, especially in Eritrea, Ethiopia, northwestern Kenya, Mauritania, Senegambia and Sudan. Negatively affected by habitat degradation, e.g., mean density in Watucal Forest Reserve, northern Nigeria, declined by approximately 96% over a decade at the end of the last century. Occurs in many protected areas, examples being Comoé National Park, in Ivory Coast, Bui National Park, in Ghana, Waza National Park, in Cameroon, Awash National Park, in Ethiopia, and Murchison Falls National Park, in Uganda.

Beautiful Sunbird (Gorgeous)

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Common throughout most of range. Has apparently declined to point of extinction locally, e.g., in Tsavo East (where formerly common). Occurs in many protected areas, examples being Amboseli National Park, in Kenya, and Lake Manyara, Serengeti, Tarangire and Arusha National Parks, in Tanzania.

Peter Boesman started birding at a young age in his home country of Belgium. He soon birded all over Europe, and shared his bird knowledge by writing articles, co-authoring a book about the birds of Flanders and joining the Belgian Rarities Committee—all while completing his MSc in both Engineering sciences and Music. In the early 90s, he moved to the Neotropics where he developed a special interest in bird sounds. He pioneered sharing bird song recordings by making multimedia productions and his MP3 collections were the reference for many Neotropical countries in the pre-internet days. Back in Belgium, he continues to focus on recording and studying bird sounds, and he has been especially prolific in analyzing bird vocalizations to support taxonomy and identification. Peter has written more than 1,000 voice accounts for Birds of the World, 400+ notes on the vocal distinctiveness of taxa, and several bird sound-related scientific papers. Peter’s entire bird sound collection – about 30,000+ recordings from about half the world’s bird species – are now all available at the Macaulay Library. He continues to provide expert voice accounts for Birds of the World.