Sunbirds (Nectariniidae)

Common Purple-banded Sunbird (Cinnyris bifasciatus) - HBW 13, p. 285

French: Souimanga bifascié German: Porphyrnektarvogel Spanish: Suimanga Bandeado
Other common names: Purple-banded Sunbird, Little Purple-banded/(Little) Bifasciated/Short-billed Sunbird

Taxonomy: Certhia bifasciata Shaw, 1811, Malembo, Cabinda, Angola.
Genus often subsumed in Nectarinia. Forms a superspecies with C. tsavoensis, and the two are sometimes treated as conspecific. Proposed race strophium, described from Manhiça (Sul do Save), in Mozambique, considered indistinguishable from microrhynchus. Two subspecies currently recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

bifasciatus (Shaw, 1811) - SW Central African Republic and Gabon S, discontinuously, to W Angola (Cabinda S to Benguela, also Namibe and C Huíla).
microrhynchus Shelley, 1876 - E DRCongo, Uganda and Kenya S to extreme E Angola (NE Moxico), NE Namibia (Caprivi), extreme N Botswana, E Zimbabwe, Mozambique and E South Africa; Zanzibar and Mafia I, off Tanzania.

Least Concern

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Sounds

1 recording

A male singing from the top of a tree. 14:34. Locality Mkuze Game Reserve, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu Natal Province, South Africa (ssp microrhynchus)
Charles Hesse 3 January 2010 3 years ago 4