It’s a Olive-backed Sunbird

The male Olive-backed Sunbird

The female Olive-backed Sunbird

I Got it!

The colorful little birds returned as I expected! I finally got to snap both of them together while they were searching for food in my little garden. They were chirping, playing and singing. This time I caught them, male and female courting together.

The female bird perched on my front gate and the male followed. At first they were far apart but the male moved nearer to her. Although she hopped away but the male kept moving close.. The male performed the courting dance advancing nearer to the female bird. They were so engrossed with each other that they seemed not to be aware of anything else.

They were so occupied courting and dancing in excitement that their sense of alertness were not focused. They seemed so much in love that they didnt even know that I had come so near with my Canon camera 30D and 70-200mm telephoto zoom lens, standing behind my car, clicking continuosly. Finally they sensed my presence as I wanted to go for closer shots and they flew away.

These colorful little birds are actually the Olive-backed Sunbird. My blogfriend Birgitte from Denmark emailed me with a link to the information and the name of these birds. Thanks a lot Birgitte.

The sunbirds are a group of very small birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Their flight is fast and direct on their short wings. Most species can take nectar by hovering, but usually perch to feed most of the time.

The Olive-backed Sunbird is common across southern China to the Philippines and Malaysia down to northeast Australia. They are small songbirds, at most 12cm long. The underparts of both male and female are bright yellow, the backs are a dull brown color. The forehead, throat and upper breast of the adult male is a dark, metallic blue-black. Read more