Sunbirds (Nectariniidae)
Malachite Sunbird (Nectarinia famosa) - HBW 13, p. 272
French: Souimanga malachite
German: Malachitnektarvogel
Spanish: Suimanga Malaquita
Other common names: Yellow-tufted Malachite/Common Malachite/Long-tailed Emerald Sunbird, Green Sugarbird
Taxonomy: Certhia famosa Linnaeus, 1766, Cape of Good Hope, South Africa.
Possibly forms a superspecies with N. johnstoni. Proposed races subfamosa (described from Antotto, in C Ethiopia), centralis (Lusasa, in S Uganda) and aeneigularis (Sotik, in SW Kenya) all considered indistinguishable from cupreonitens; major (described from Weenen, in KwaZulu-Natal) synonymized with nominate. Two subspecies recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution:
- cupreonitens Shelley, 1876 - Eritrea, Ethiopia, S Sudan (Imatong Mts), E DRCongo, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, NE Zambia, N Malawi and N Mozambique.
- famosa (Linnaeus, 1776) - E Zimbabwe and adjacent Mozambique, and S Namibia, South Africa, Lesotho and W Swaziland.
- Least Concern Enlarge map
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Bird singing early morning with responding partner Locality Karoo National Park, Western Cape Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Roland Bischoff 22 October 2011 1 year ago 40 sec 4.6 -
A female perched on an aloe Locality Paarl Mountain Nature Reserve, Paarl, Western Cape Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Greg Baker 27 September 2002 36 weeks ago 10 sec 4 -
A male perched, singing and briefly wing-stretching before flying away Locality Chelinda, Nyika Plateau, Northern Region, Malawi (ssp cupreonitens)
Greg Baker 23 October 2005 27 weeks ago 21 sec 3.2 -
An adult singing in a bush Locality Cape Point, Cape Town, Western Cape Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Francesc Capdevila i Torr... 17 October 2002 10 years ago 27 sec 2.6 -
An adult at the top of a Protea tree Locality Long Tom Pass, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Francesc Capdevila i Torr... 2 October 2002 10 years ago 11 sec 2.3 -
An adult singing in a bush Locality Cape Point, Cape Town, Western Cape Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Francesc Capdevila i Torr... 17 October 2002 10 years ago 17 sec 2.3
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An adult male feeding on the nectar of Leonotis flowers in full sun.
Locality Mount Kenya National Park, Kenya (ssp cupreonitens)
Steve Garvie 10 July 2010 2 years ago 4.7 -
Bird feeding on sugarbush
Locality Goegeap Nature Reserve, Springbok, Northern Cape Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Roland Bischoff 30 August 2005 2 years ago 4.5 -
A male feeding
Locality Sani Pass, Lesotho (ssp famosa)
Marc Gálvez 9 February 2011 1 year ago 4.4 -
A male feeding on the nectar of flowers
Locality Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Serengeti, Tanzania
Krzysztof Blachowiak 22 March 2013 6 weeks ago 4.3 -
A bird resting
Locality Aberdare National Park, Kenya
Jean Hupperetz 3 December 2010 3 years ago 4.3 -
Male perched on the top of a flower
Locality Drakensberg Mountains, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa (ssp famosa)
Dubi Shapiro 8 January 2011 1 year ago 4.1
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Bird singing early morning sing from a perch Locality Karoo National Park, Western Cape Province, South Africa
Roland Bischoff 26 October 2011 1 year ago 4.5 -
A male calling from the top of a tree on Lost City Trail. 13:01. Locality Mount Sheba Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa
(ssp famosa)
Charles Hesse 30 December 2009 3 years ago 4.5
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