Longevities of sunbirds and sugarbirds

The sunbirds and spiderhunters (family Nectariniidae) are small passerine birds found in the Old World. There are about 145 species with species diversity being highest in equatorial regions. They usually have decurved bills, as most sunbirds feed largely on nectar. They also feed on insects and spiders, especially when feeding young. Many sunbirds are brightly coloured, often with iridescent feathers, particularly in the males. Many species also have especially long tail feathers.

The sugarbirds (family, Promeropidae) are small passerine birds, restricted to southern Africa. They resemble large, long-tailed sunbirds, but but may be more closely related to the Australian honeyeaters.

Longevities of southern African sunbirds

The Birds of Africa handbook lists 81 sunbird species in Africa (excluding the Indian Ocean islands species), but there are few longevity records outside southern Africa. Although generally small, many southern African sunbird species have reached longevities over 8 years. The two sugarbird species are also included in the table below. The oldest known sunbird is an Olive Sunbird of 14 years 10 months (ring AC03697) in Malawi. See longevities of other birds here.

Table. Longevity records for southern African sugarbirds and sunbirds

(from SAFRING database, y=years, m=months, d=days)

Biometrics of southern African sunbirds and sugarbirds

Larger (by mass) sunbirds have longer bill lengths, as shown neatly in the graph below. The two sugarbirds are slightly heavier relative to bill length than expected, relative to the sunbirds.

The smallest sunbird (by mass) is Neergaard’s Sunbird at an average mass of 6.7g. The sunbird with the shortest bill is the Collared Sunbird, with an average bill length of 15 mm. The largest sunbird, by both mass and bill length, is the Malachite Sunbird.