Rama Krishna Sangem
Green India Challenge founder activist and former RS MP J Santosh Kuamr this Sunday, October 5, posted pics of a beautiful sunbird on a lush green tree branch. As usual, his Sunday Photography is linked to season’s settings. Rainy season technically is over, but its footprints are still everywhere. So are these pics he posted on X.
Colourful bird, greenish tree and crimson red flowers – is the setting of these pics, which got close to 1,900 views and 80 likes. Good that Santosh has a regular fans base that appreciates his every photography.
Sunbirds and spiderhunters make up the family Nectariniidae of passerine birds. They are small, slender passerines from the Old World, usually with downward-curved bills. Many are brightly coloured, often with iridescent feathers, particularly in the males. Many species also have especially long tail feathers. Their range extends through most of Africa to the Middle East, South Asia, South-east Asia and southern China, to Indonesia, New Guinea and northern Australia. Species diversity is highest in equatorial regions, says Wikipeadia.
There are 152 species in 16 genera. Their family name is from most sunbirds feeding largely on nectar, but they will also catch insects and spiders, especially when feeding their young. Flowers that prevent access to their nectar because of their shape (for example, very long and narrow flowers) are simply punctured at the base near the nectaries, from which the birds sip the nectar. Fruit is also part of the diet of some species. Their flight is fast and direct, thanks to their short wings.
Dozens of varieties
The sunbirds have counterparts in two very distantly related groups: the hummingbirds of the Americas and the honeyeaters of Australia. Moreover, there are dozens of varieties of sunbids that are active in pollination around world. They look similar, but not the same. The resemblances are due to convergent evolution brought about by a similar nectar-feeding lifestyle. Some sunbird species can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird, but they usually perch to feed.
