Birds of India - The New Synopsis

A complete checklist of bird species and subspecies found in India

Passeriformes (Perching Birds)

Nectariniidae (Sunbirds)

• Arachnothera Temminck, 1826 Nouveau recueil de planches coloriées d'oiseaux, pour servir de suite et de complément aux planches enluminées de Buffon livr.65 pl.388 textfig.1 Nectarinia chrysogenys Temminck, 1826; Type by monotypy
  • 1238. Little Spiderhunter Arachnothera longirostra (Latham, 1790)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1238a. Arachnothera longirostra longirostra (Latham, 1790) [HB#1931]
      Original Description: Certhia longirostra Latham, 1790 Index ornithologicus, sive systema ornithologiæ; complectens avium divisionem in classes, ordines, genera, species, ipsarumque varietates: adjectis synonymis, locis, descriptionibus, &c. 1 p.299 (Bengal)
      Taxonomy: Includes vantynei Koelz 1939 from Jagalbet, near Londa, NW Karnataka.
      Distribution: Occurs in three disjunct population (a) N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, Assam, and all NE hill states, extending through Bangladesh till S W Bengal (b) NE Ghats of S Odisha, S Chhattisgarh, and NE Andhra (c) W Ghats from Ratnagiri (Maharashtra) more abundantly from about Goa south and all the way till the southern tip of the Ghats – extending marginally east through the Deccan transition zone in Karnataka as well as the outcrops of Nilgiris and Palanis (not in Biligirirangans).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, USNM, YPM, TNHM, BNHM
  
  
  • 1239. Streaked Spiderhunter Arachnothera magna (Hodgson, 1836)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1239a. Arachnothera magna magna (Hodgson, 1836) [HB#1932]
      Original Description: Cinnyris magna Hodgson, 1836 The India Review and Journal of Foreign Science and the Arts 1 p.272
      Distribution: Bilaspur (Himachal, historical), N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, Assam, and all NE hill states.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM, BNHM
  
  
• Chalcoparia Cabanis, 1851 Museum Heineanum. Verzeichniss der orithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand Heine 1 p.103 Sylvia singalensis Latham, 1790; Type by original designation = Motacilla singalensis Gmelin, 1789
  • 1240. Ruby-cheeked Sunbird Chalcoparia singalensis (Gmelin, 1789)
    Original Description: Motacilla singalensis Gmelin, 1789 Systema Naturae. Editio decima tertia, aucta, reformata. Cura Jo. Frid. Gmelin (etc.). Tomus I. Pars II 1 pt2 p.964
    Alternative Names: Rubycheek
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1240a. Chalcoparia singalensis assamensis Kloss, 1930 [HB#1906]
      Original Description: Chalcoparia singalensis assamensis Kloss, 1930 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 50 p.70 (Cachar, Assam)
      Taxonomy: New name for C s. lepida Latham 1790 and C s. rubinigentis Baker 1930.
      Distribution: N Bengal, S Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal, and all NE hill states; sporadically in S W Bengal (Hijuli); disjunctly in the NE Ghats of Odisha, S Chhattisgarh, NE Andhra till the Godavari river.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1880.1.1.4065 (Syntype).
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, YPM
      Notes: Sight record from Uttarakhand (RA2012) not traced.
  
  
• Leptocoma Cabanis, 1851 Museum Heineanum. Verzeichniss der orithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand Heine 1 p.104 Nectarinia hasseltii Temminck, 1825; Type by original designation = Certhia brasiliana Gmelin, 1788
  • 1241. Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica (Linnaeus, 1766)
    Original Description: Certhia zeylonica Linnaeus, 1766 Systema Naturæ. Editio duodecima reformata. Tomus I [part 1] p.188
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1241a. Leptocoma zeylonica flaviventris (Hermann, 1804) [HB#1907]
      Original Description: Certhia flaviventris Hermann, 1804 Observationes zoologicae quibus novae complures, aliaeque animalium species describuntur et illustrantur p.136 (Tharangambadi [=Tranquebarica])
      Taxonomy: Includes sola Vieillot 1819 from Pondicherry [=Puducherry] and whistleri Ripley 1946 from Muddur, Mysuru.
      Distribution: Indian subcontinent south from Gujarat, E Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, W Bengal, as well as Tripura and Cachar; and south till tip of the peninsula; sporadically extending north to Jodhpur and Sariska in Rajasthan, Darbhanga (Bihar), and east through Jalpaiguri, Assam (including east), W Meghalaya, Manipur valley, and Mizoram.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH, YPM, TNHM, HYD, FTLB
      Notes: Range expansion to the north and east in the last few decades.
  
  
  • 1242. Crimson-backed Sunbird Leptocoma minima (Sykes, 1832) [HB#1909]
    Original Description: Cinnyris minima Sykes, 1832 Proceedings of the Committee of Science and Correspondence of the Zoological Society of London Part 2 no.18 p. 99 (Ghats, Deccan [=Ghauts, Dukhun])
    Alternative Names: Small Sunbird
    Distribution: W Ghats from Nashik till southern tip of the Ghats in Kanyakumari district (Tamil Nadu). SW Monsoon: Sporadically in Deccan hillocks; rarely in SW coast.
    Type Specimen: NHMUK#1860.4.16.67 (Holotype).
    Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, YPM, TNHM, LKO
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Endemic: Western Ghats.
  
  
  • 1243. Van Hasselt's Sunbird Leptocoma brasiliana (Gmelin, 1788)
    Alternative Names: Maroon-bellied Sunbird, Purple-throated Sunbird (with L. sperata EL)
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1243a. Leptocoma brasiliana brasiliana (Gmelin, 1788) [HB#1910]
      Original Description: Certhia brasiliana Gmelin, 1788 Systema Naturae. Editio decima tertia, aucta, reformata. Cura Jo. Frid. Gmelin (etc.). Tomus I [pars I] Tomus 1 p.474-475
      Distribution: Karimganj (Cachar) and Tripura.
      Specimens: NHMUK, FMNH, YPM
      Notes: See Ismavel & Praveen (2015, IB 10 (3&4): 106) for historical records. Meghalaya sight report not evaluated.
  
  
• Aethopyga Cabanis, 1851 Museum Heineanum. Verzeichniss der orithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand Heine 1 p.103 Certhia siparaja Raffles, 1822; Type by subsequent designation (Gray, 1855, Catalogue of the genera and subgenera of birds contained in the British Museum, p.19)
  • 1244. Fire-tailed Sunbird Aethopyga ignicauda (Hodgson, 1836)
    Alternative Names: Fire-tailed Yellow-backed Sunbird
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1244a. Aethopyga ignicauda ignicauda (Hodgson, 1836) [HB#1930]
      Original Description: Cinnyris ignicauda Hodgson, 1836 The India Review and Journal of Foreign Science and the Arts 1 p.273
      Distribution: E Himachal (one report from Kangra), Uttarakhand, N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Cachar, and Manipur; straggles to lowland Assam.
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM, BNHM
    • 1244b. Aethopyga ignicauda flavescens Baker, 1921
      Original Description: Aethopyga ignicauda flavescens Baker, 1921 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 41 p.71
      Distribution: Mizoram.
      Specimens: UMMZ
  
  
  • 1245. Black-throated Sunbird Aethopyga saturata (Hodgson, 1836)
    Alternative Names: Black-breasted Sunbird
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1245a. Aethopyga saturata saturata (Hodgson, 1836) [HB#1925]
      Original Description: Cinnyris saturata Hodgson, 1836 The India Review and Journal of Foreign Science and the Arts 1 p.273
      Distribution: Uttarakhand, N Bengal, Sikkim, and NW Assam that adjoins Bhutan.
      Specimens: BNHS, UMZC, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM
    • 1245b. Aethopyga saturata assamensis (Horsfield, 1840) [HB#1926]
      Original Description: Cinnyris assamensis Horsfield, 1840 Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London Pt7 no.82 p.167 (Sadiya, Assam)
      Taxonomy: Includes ariel Koelz 1953 from a place near Nokrek, Garo hills, W Meghalaya.
      Distribution: Arunachal, C and E Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Cachar, Manipur, and Mizoram.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, UMZC, UMMZ, FMNH, USNM, YPM
  
  
  • 1246. Mrs. Gould's Sunbird Aethopyga gouldiae (Vigors, 1831)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1246a. Aethopyga gouldiae gouldiae (Vigors, 1831) [HB#1919]
      Original Description: Cinnyris gouldiae Vigors, 1831 Proceedings of the Committee of Science and Correspondence of the Zoological Society of London Part 1 no.4 p.44 (Shimla-Almora districts, W Himalaya)
      Distribution: Along the Himalaya from Jammu, through Himachal, Uttarakhand, N Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal, and sporadically in adjoining Assam.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, YPM
    • 1246b. Aethopyga gouldiae isolata Baker, 1925 [HB#1920]
      Original Description: Aethopyga gouldiae isolata Baker, 1925 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 46 p.13 (Manipur)
      Taxonomy: Includes trochiloidea Koelz 1954 from Blue Mountain, Mizoram.
      Distribution: Nagaland, Meghalaya, Cachar, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura – as well as adjoining Assam.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.12.1.472 (Holotype).
      Specimens: NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, USNM, YPM, BNHM
    • 1246c. Aethopyga gouldiae dabryii (Verreaux, 1867) [HB#1921]
      Original Description: Nectarinia dabryii Verreaux, 1867 Revue et Magasin de Zoologie Pure et Appliquée (2), Tome 19, 30ème Année p.173-174, pl. 15
      Distribution: Winter: Sporadic in Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, and Mizoram.
      Specimens: UMMZ, YPM
      Notes: Cachar report (AR2001) not evaluated but likely to be correct. See Islam et al. (2020, IB 15 (6): 181).
  
  
  • 1247. Green-tailed Sunbird Aethopyga nipalensis (Hodgson, 1836)
    Alternative Names: Nepal Yellow-backed Sunbird
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1247a. Aethopyga nipalensis horsfieldi (Blyth, 1843) [HB#1922]
      Original Description: Cinnyris horsfieldii Blyth, 1843 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. 12, Part 2, N° 143 p.975-976 (Mussoorie)
      Distribution: E Himachal and Uttarakhand.
      Type Specimen: ZSI#18855 (Syntype?).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, AMNH, FMNH
    • 1247b. Aethopyga nipalensis nipalensis (Hodgson, 1836) [HB#1923]
      Original Description: Cinnyris nipalensis Hodgson, 1836 The India Review and Journal of Foreign Science and the Arts 1 p.273
      Taxonomy: Includes griseiceps Bentham 1908 from Darjeeling, N Bengal.
      Distribution: N Bengal, Sikkim, W and C Arunachal, and adjoining Assam.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, BNHM
      Notes: C Arunachal likely to be the zone of intergradation with koelzi.
    • 1247c. Aethopyga nipalensis koelzi Ripley, 1948 [HB#1924]
      Original Description: Aethopyga nipalensis koelzi Ripley, 1948 Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 61 (18) p.106 (Dening-Dreyi trail, Mishmi hills, Arunachal)
      Taxonomy: Includes ripleyi Koelz 1952 from Mawryngkneng, Khasi hills, Meghalaya.
      Distribution: NW Arunachal from Mishmi hills onwards to Nagaland, Meghalaya, Cachar, and Manipur.
      Type Specimen: USNM#390621 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, UMZC, UMMZ, FMNH, USNM, YPM, BNHM
    • 1247d. Aethopyga nipalensis victoriae Rippon, 1904
      Original Description: Aethopyga victoriae Rippon, 1904 Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club 14 p.83
      Distribution: Mizoram.
      Specimens: UMMZ
  
  
  • 1248. Vigors's Sunbird Aethopyga vigorsii (Sykes, 1832) [HB#1929]
    Original Description: Cinnyris vigorsii Sykes, 1832 Proceedings of the Committee of Science and Correspondence of the Zoological Society of London Part 2 no.18 p.98,99 (Ghats, Deccan [=Ghauts, Dukhun])
    Alternative Names: Vigors's Yellow-backed Sunbird, Sahyadri Sunbird
    Distribution: NW Ghats from Ratanmahal (Gujarat, further north of Narmada), Surat Dangs, south till about Goa and Dandeli. Sporadically in CW Ghats of Karnataka till about Kudremukh. Also, in the western edge of Satpura hills (Yawal).
    Type Specimen: NHMUK#1880.1.1.998 (Holotype).
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, AMNH, FMNH
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Endemic: Western Ghats.
    Notes: Claimed from Nilgiris (AR2001), but no verifiable evidence exists.
  
  
  • 1249. Crimson Sunbird Aethopyga siparaja (Raffles, 1822)
    Original Description: Certhia siparaja Raffles, 1822 Transactions of the Linnean Society of London (1), 13 p.299
    Alternative Names: Yellow-backed Sunbird (with A. vigorsii)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1249a. Aethopyga siparaja seheriae (Tickell, 1833) [HB#1927]
      Original Description: Nectarinia seheriae Tickell, 1833 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol. 2, N° 23 p.577 (near Seheria in Borabhum, E India)
      Taxonomy: Includes mussooriensis Baker 1925 from Mussoorie, Uttarakhand.
      Distribution: Himalayan foothills from Kashmir, Jammu, through Himachal, and Uttarakhand; adjoining Punjab, Haryana and N Uttar Pradesh, till N Bengal, and Sikkim. Disjunctly Chota Nagpur plateau in S W Bengal, S Jharkhand, NE Odisha, and south through NE Ghats of Odisha, adjoining Chhattisgarh, NE Andhra till Maredumilli (Andhra) on Godavari river; extending west till Balaghat and Kanha in E Madhya Pradesh.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM
    • 1249b. Aethopyga siparaja labecula (Horsfield, 1840) [HB#1928]
      Original Description: Cinnyris labecula Horsfield, 1840 Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London Pt7 no.82 p.167 (Assam)
      Distribution: Assam, adjoining Arunachal, and all NE hill states.
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH
    • 1249c. Aethopyga siparaja nicobarica Hume, 1873 [HB#1929a]
      Original Description: Aethopyga nicobarica Hume, 1873 Stray Feathers Vol. 1, N° 5 p.412-415 (Kondul and Meroe Is, S Nicobar Is)
      Distribution: S Nicobar group of islands.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.12.1.267 (Syntype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, ROM, USNM
  
  
• Cinnyris Cuvier, 1816 Le règne animal distribué d'après son organisation, pour servir de base a l'histoire naturelle des animaux et d'introduction à l'anatomie comparée 1 p.411 Certhia splendida Shaw, 1811; Type by subsequent designation (Gray, 1855, Catalogue of the genera and subgenera of birds contained in the British Museum, p.19) = Certhia coccinigastra Latham, 1801
  • 1250. Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus (Latham, 1790)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1250a. Cinnyris asiaticus brevirostris (Blanford, 1873) [HB#1916]
      Original Description: Nectarinia (Arachnechthra) brevirostris Blanford, 1873 Ibis (3) 3 (9) p.86-87
      Distribution: W Rajasthan and Kachchh.
      Specimens: ZSI, UMMZ, FMNH
    • 1250b. Cinnyris asiaticus asiaticus (Latham, 1790) [HB#1917]
      Original Description: Certhia asiatica Latham, 1790 Index ornithologicus, sive systema ornithologiæ; complectens avium divisionem in classes, ordines, genera, species, ipsarumque varietates: adjectis synonymis, locis, descriptionibus, &c. 1 p.288 (Gurgaon, Haryana)
      Distribution: Throughout India from the Himalayan foothills of Kashmir, Jammu through entire N India, E and C Rajasthan, C India, Indo-Gangetic plains till W Bengal, Gujarat (including Kathiawar peninsula), and the entire southern peninsula.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, YPM, HYD, LKO, FTLB, BNHM
      Notes: Intergrades with brevirostris in Rajasthan and Gujarat and with intermedius in Bengal and E India.
    • 1250c. Cinnyris asiaticus intermedius (Hume, 1870) [HB#1918]
      Original Description: A[rachnechthra] intermedia Hume, 1870 Ibis (2) 6 (23) p.436 (Tripura [=Tipperah])
      Distribution: E India from NE Andhra, Odisha, W Bengal, S Sikkim, Assam, and all NE hill states.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.12.1.579 (Syntype).
      Specimens: ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH
  
  
  • 1251. Olive-backed Sunbird Cinnyris ornatus Lesson, 1827
    Original Description: Cinnyris ornatus Lesson, 1827 Dictionnaire des sciences naturelles, dans lequel on traite méthodiquement des différens êtres de la nature, considérés soit en eux-mêmes, d'après l'état actuel de nos connoissances, soit relativement à l'utilité qu'en peuvent retirer la médecine, l'agriculture, le commerce et les arts. Suivi d'une biographie des plus célèbres naturalistes ...Par plusieurs professeurs du Jardin du Roi, et des principales écoles de Paris 39 p.15
    Taxonomy: Previously lumped with extralimital C jugularis (Linnaeus 1766); a taxonomy sometimes still followed (HBW/BLI).
    Alternative Names: Ornate Sunbird
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Moderate. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: Sight records from Bangladesh indicate that flammaxillaris Blyth 1845 can potentially visit Tripura or Mizoram.
    • 1251a. Cinnyris ornatus andamanicus (Hume, 1873) [HB#1913]
      Original Description: Arachnechthra andamanica Hume, 1873 Stray Feathers Vol. 1, N° 5 p.404-406 (Andaman Is)
      Taxonomy: Studies by Unnithan (1996, JBNHS 93 (2): 297) suggests a subspecies status for birds in Narcondam Is.
      Distribution: Narcondam Is., N, Middle, S, and Little Andaman Is., as well as islets of Ross, N Reef, Interview, Long, Outram, Nicholson, Havelock, Neil, Ross (Netaji), Tarmugli, Alexandra, Redskin, Boat, Jolly Buoy, and Rutland Is.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1886.12.1.1898 (Syntype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, AMNH
    • 1251b. Cinnyris ornatus proselius Oberholser, 1923 [HB#1915]
      Original Description: Cinnyris ornata proselia Oberholser, 1923 Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 13 (11) p.230 (Car Nicobar Is.)
      Distribution: Car Nicobar Is.
      Type Specimen: USNM#178889 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, USNM
    • 1251c. Cinnyris ornatus klossi (Richmond, 1902) [HB#1914]
      Original Description: Arachnechthra klossi Richmond, 1902 Proceedings of the United States National Museum vol. XXV, No. 1288, (17 September 1902) p.297-298 (Great Nicobar Is.)
      Taxonomy: Studies Unnithan (1996, JBNHS 93 (2): 297) suggests a subspecies status for the birds in C Nicobar group. Includes blanfordi Baker 1921 from Kondul Is., S Nicobar group.
      Distribution: C Nicobar group (Tillanchong, Teresa, Bompoka, Trinket, Kamorta, Nancowry, and Katchal), S Nicobar group (Treis, Trak, Meroe, Kondol, Little, and Great Nicobar Is.).
      Type Specimen: USNM#178787 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, USNM
  
  
  • 1252. Loten's Sunbird Cinnyris lotenius (Linnaeus, 1766)
    Original Description: Certhia lotenia Linnaeus, 1766 Systema Naturæ. Editio duodecima reformata. Tomus I [part 1] p.188
    Alternative Names: Long-billed Sunbird, Maroon-breasted Sunbird
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 1252a. Cinnyris lotenius hindustanicus Whistler, 1944 [HB#1911]
      Original Description: Cinnyris lotenia hindustanicus Whistler, 1944 Spolia Zeylanica 23 (3/4) p.199 (Kumta, North Kanara)
      Distribution: NW Ghats from Surat Dangs but more regularly from NW Maharashtra till the southern tip of the peninsula in Kanyakumari district including the W coastal strip; In E India from, S W Bengal (Kolkata region), E Odisha (locally), along the E Ghats in Andhra, adjoining Telangana, and locally throughout S Karnataka and Tamil Nadu including parts of Deccan and E coastal plains.
      Type Specimen: NHMUK#1925.12.23.1088 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, FMNH, YPM, TNHM, LKO