Purple-rumped Sunbird

The Purple-rumped Sunbird is a compact, brilliantly patterned nectar feeder endemic to peninsular India and Sri Lanka. The male is one of the most colorful garden birds in the region, combining a maroon-chestnut back, a metallic green-blue crown and shoulder patch, a glossy purple rump and throat patch, and a bright yellow belly with a small white flank patch.

Females are far plainer, with grayish-olive upperparts, a whitish throat, and pale yellow underparts, lacking the male's iridescent colors entirely. The species is non-migratory and holds its striking plumage year-round, unlike many other sunbirds that molt into duller eclipse plumage.

Key field marks

• Tiny size with a thin, curved bill
• Male: maroon back, iridescent purple throat patch and rump, green-blue crown, yellow belly, small white patch on the breast side
• Female: plain grey-olive above, pale yellow below, whitish throat
• Short, direct flight between flowering shrubs and trees

Similar species

The Purple Sunbird male looks all-black/iridescent purple without the maroon back or yellow belly. Loten's Sunbird is larger and longer-billed with a maroon breast band rather than a purple throat patch. Females of these species are similar but Purple-rumped Sunbird females show a whiter throat contrasting with yellow underparts.

This species is found throughout peninsular India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Bangladesh, generally in lowland and lower hill habitats. It thrives in gardens, parks, coconut and areca plantations, cultivated land, scrub, and open deciduous forest, and adapts readily to human-modified landscapes with flowering trees.

It is a sedentary species, though individuals may make short local movements tracking seasonal flowering.

Voice

The song is a rapid, sweet, high-pitched twittering; calls include sharp "chip" or "twick" notes given while foraging.

Feeding

Purple-rumped Sunbirds feed primarily on nectar from a wide variety of flowering trees and shrubs, hovering briefly or clinging to blossoms, and they also glean small insects and spiders from foliage, particularly during the breeding season.

Nesting and breeding

The nest is an untidy, oval, hanging pouch of fibers, bark strips, and cobwebs with a side entrance, often suspended from a low branch, wire, or even a porch light. Females typically build the nest and incubate 2 eggs, while both parents feed the young.