Amethyst Sunbird

The Amethyst Sunbird is quite large, it is equipped with a long, clearly curved beak in the shape of a sickle. The dimorphism is clearly visible between the two sexes. The male, which could appear entirely black, possesses small, clearly visible iridescent parts under good light, due to the iridescence of the feathers. When seen from the front and with a good angle, the head of the Amethyst Sunbird is remarkably iridescent and scaly. The crown is metallic blue-green, the chin and throat are pink-fuchsia blue. In this same position, two small pink-violet to blue spots are visible on the shoulders. The beak is shiny black, the iris is dark brown and the legs are black. The wings are dark brown to black-brown and the rest of the body is black. The immature male has only a pink-violet iridescent spot on the throat. The female, whose general appearance is clear, can be confused with other females of the same species whose distribution zones are identical and which can be found in the same habitats. This is the case with the female Red-breasted Sunbird and Mariqua Sunbird. Here our female has the upper parts gray-brown tinged with olive. A light eyebrow and pale yellow-white mustaches stand out from the uniform head. The iris is dark brown, the beak is black. The yellowish throat is marbled with brown, sometimes so densely that it appears black. The underside is brownish yellow finely striped with fawn. The coverts are dark brown, the remiges are dark gray-brown with fawn borders, paler on the primary remiges. The tail is brown blackish with white-grayish ends. The juvenile looks like the female with the darker throat and the lower parts spotted and yellowish. Four subspecies are recognized in the Amethyst Sunbird. These subspecies differ in the females by the amount of marble and stripes on the throat and lower parts.The male of the kirkii subspecies has blue-fuchsia pink plumage on its rump. The male of the deminuata subspecies has a slightly smaller bill.