THE Malachite sunbird male is an entirely bright, metallic green colour with blue-black tail and wingtips, while the female is a yellowish grey.
They are distributed over all the Western Cape, lower Northern Cape, Lesotho, inland KZN and Eastern Cape and from Gauteng eastward to the escarpment and eastern Free State.
The bird’s preferred habitat is variable – from scrubby hillsides in mountainous country, to alpine grasslands, riverine thornbush, gardens, parks and exotic plantations.
Malachites are usually solitary or in pairs when breeding. Males are aggressive to conspecifics and other sunbirds. The flight is dashing. They sing from inside a bush with a high pitched twittering, then call with a loud piping from the top of a conspicuous perch.
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Food preferences are nectar (especially from aloes, proteas and watsonias), insects and spiders.
Breeding season is from October until January, when they usually lay two pale brown or greenish buff eggs in an oval grass nest. The nest is about 14cm long and has a top side entrance and porch suspended from a grasstuft, hanging branch, upright fork or driftwood and dead branches.
Incubation is 13 days and nestlings remain for 18 to 21 days.
The Zulu Name is uhlazazana and in Afrikaans, Jangroentjie.
CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE BIRDS OF THE WEEK BY BRUCE MUNRO
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