Crimson Sunbird feeds largely on nectar,just in line with other sunbirds.About 11cm in size,one can see it hovering in the air around flowers.It perches to suck the nectar,but rarely stays for long at one place and continuously keeps on changing its position from one branch and flower to another. The long beak is typically made to suck the nectar from flowers,but at times it consumes insects especially for feeding young ones and to meet the protein requirements during breeding season.
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| An Adult Male |
The adult male has a crimson/maroon coloured chest,sides and upper back.Lower back is olive green with a bluish green tail and head.The females have an olive green back and yellowish underparts.
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| Crimson Sunbird Female |
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| Sub Adult (Photo Suneet Bhardwaj) |
The subadults can be seen with various proportions of crimson colour around throat, chest and upper back.
The bright colours of body make it vulnerable to the attack of predators as it can be easily spotted, and therefore the quick movements are probably a defence to dodge them.I have often seen it arround maroon coloured or similar flowers which probably is a strategy to minimise the chances of being spotted by predators.
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