| Cape sugarbird | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Male in South Africa | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Promeropidae |
| Genus: | Promerops |
| Species: | P. cafer |
| Binomial name | |
| Promerops cafer | |
| Synonyms | |
Merops caferLinnaeus, 1758 | |
The Cape sugarbird (Promerops cafer) [2] is one of the eight bird species endemic to the Fynbos biome of the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. [3]
The Cape sugarbird was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae . He placed it with the bee-eaters in the genus Merops and coined the binomial name Merops cafer. [4] [5] Linnaeus specified the type locality as Ethiopia but this was changed to the Cape of Good Hope by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. [5] [6] The Cape sugarbird is now placed in the genus Promerops that was introduced for the species by Brisson in 1760. [7] [8] The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. [8]
The Cape sugarbird is a grey-brown bird that is easily recognisable by a spot of yellow under its tail and the very long tail feathers present in males. The male is 34–44 cm long, and the shorter-tailed, shorter-billed, and paler breasted female 25–29 cm long. Another characteristic of the Cape sugarbird is the sound it makes when it flies. The main flight feathers are arranged in such a way that when the bird beats its wings, a frrt-frrt sound is made with the intention of attracting females. [9]
The Cape sugarbird is distributed throughout most of the fire driven ecosystem of the Fynbos in South Africa, the dominant vegetation type of the Cape Floral Region where there are flowering proteas and ericas. It is most common in areas that have not burnt recently, and almost absent from recently burnt areas. [10] It is also found in gardens in summer when most proteas are not in flower, but urban birds are associated with greater stress measures. [11] With a large population and extensive range, [10] the Cape sugarbird is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. [1]
The Cape sugarbird is a specialist nectar feeder when it comes to feeding off Proteaceae. Its long, sharp beak is used to reach the nectar of a variety of species of protea with its long brush-tipped tongue. The staple diet of this sugarbird is nectar; however, it will also eat spiders and insects. The characteristic strong winds in the Cape may make feeding off protea heads difficult, but the Cape sugarbird has adapted to this with the development of sharp claws. [9]
The breeding season for the Cape sugarbird is winter when food supplies are ample. [9] Breeding males set up territories in mature stands of Protea bushes, where they perform vocal displays. [12]
The sugarbirds are a small genus, Promerops, and family, Promeropidae, of passerine birds, restricted to southern Africa. In general appearance and habits, they resemble large, long-tailed sunbirds or some of the Australian honeyeaters, but are not closely related to the former and are even more distantly related to the latter. They have brownish plumage, the long downcurved bill typical of passerine nectar feeders, and long tail feathers.
The yellow-billed oxpecker is a passerine bird in the family Buphagidae. It was previously placed in the starling and myna family, Sturnidae.
The olive bee-eater or Madagascar bee-eater is a near passerine bee-eater species in the genus Merops. It is native to the southern half of Africa where it is present in Angola; Botswana; Burundi; Comoros; Democratic Republic of the Congo; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Kenya; Madagascar; Malawi; Mayotte; Mozambique; Namibia; Rwanda; Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; Tanzania; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe. It is a common species with a wide range so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated their conservation status as "least concern".
The turquoise tanager is a medium-sized passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is a resident bird from Trinidad, much of Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela south to Bolivia. It is restricted to areas with humid forest, with its primary distribution being the Amazon. It was formerly treated as being conspecific with the white-bellied tanager which is found in the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil.
The Cape longclaw or orange-throated longclaw is a passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which comprises the longclaws, pipits and wagtails. It occurs in Southern Africa in Zimbabwe and southern and eastern South Africa. This species is found in coastal and mountain grassland, often near water.
The olive thrush is, in its range, one of the most common members of the thrush family (Turdidae). It occurs in African highlands from southern Malawi and Mozambique in the north to the Cape of Good Hope in the south. It is a bird of forest and woodland, but has locally adapted to parks and large gardens in suburban areas.
The orange-breasted sunbird is a species of small, predominantly nectar-feeding bird that is endemic to the fynbos shrubland biome of southwestern South Africa. It is the only member of the genus Anthobaphes, in the family Nectariniidae, though it is sometimes placed in the genus Nectarinia. The birds are sexually dimorphic, with females being olive green while the males are orange to yellow on the underside with bright green, blue and purple on the head and neck.
The Cape weaver is a species of bird in the weaver family, Ploceidae, found in southern Africa.
The red-winged starling is a bird of the starling family Sturnidae native to eastern Africa from Ethiopia to the Cape in South Africa. An omnivorous, generalist species, it prefers cliffs and mountainous areas for nesting, and has moved into cities and towns due to similarity to its original habitat.
The yellow bishop, also known as Cape bishop, Cape widow or yellow-rumped widow, is a resident breeding bird species in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The Cape bulbul is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is an endemic resident breeder in coastal bush, open forest, gardens and fynbos in western and southern South Africa. This species nests mainly in the southern spring from September to November. The nest is a thick-walled cup concealed by foliage in a small tree or shrub.
The Cape starling, also known as red-shouldered glossy-starling or Cape glossy starling, is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in Southern Africa, where it lives in woodlands, bushveld and in suburbs.
The red-tailed vanga is a species of bird in the family Vangidae. It is endemic to Madagascar.
The spangled cotinga is a species of bird in the family Cotingidae, the cotingas. It is found in the canopy of the Amazon Rainforest in South America.
The plum-throated cotinga is a species of bird in the family Cotingidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical swamps, and heavily degraded former forest.
The golden-sided euphonia is a species of bird in the family Fringillidae. It is found in northern Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and eastern Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
The rusty-margined flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers.
The rufous vanga is a species of bird in the family Vangidae. It is monotypic within the genus Schetba. It is endemic to Madagascar, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
The fulvous-crested tanager is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae, the tanagers.
The opal-rumped tanager is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is found in the Amazon and Atlantic Forest of South America. The population of the Atlantic Forest has a far paler chest than the other populations, and has often been considered a separate species as the silvery-breasted tanager. Today most authorities treat it as a subspecies of the opal-rumped tanager.
