The Nile Valley Sunbird – A Sunbird but not a Hummingbirds
This article is part of series of “protect our species” articles being published by Health, Safety and Environment Department as part of 2019 Earth Day celebrations with a focus on the wildlife found in Saudi Arabia and/or at KAUST.
One of our most beautiful birds is the elegant Nile Valley Sunbird. Observers frequently misidentify sunbirds as hummingbirds which are actually confined to the Americas. Hummingbirds and sunbirds are frequently used as an example of convergent evolution. They are similar in a number of ways. Both are energetic and have a fast and furious lifestyle concentrating on the collection of nectar. Because they spend enormous amounts of energy in flying they must collect nectar continuously in order to survive. Both have beaks shaped to aid nectar collection and also the male birds are usually brightly colored and have at least some iridescent plumage.
However, sunbirds and hummingbirds are different in one key way. Only hummingbirds can truly fly backwards and so are able to hover alongside a flower when collecting nectar. In contrast sunbirds must perch on the flower and then reach in to collect their prize.
In the breeding season the male Nile Valley Sunbird is exotically colored but in winter it is duller and similar to the female. They construct fluffy woven nests, which are often placed in thorn covered trees for protection.
On campus bougainvillea trees are a popular choice. At KAUST the best places to find Nile Valley Sunbirds are at the golf course or feeding on the bottlebrush trees close to the campus mosque.
