Purple Sunbird

Purple Sunbird

Cinnyris asiaticus

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
at Vijayawada

In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%

126 Verified sightings at Vijayawada
14,657 In all 26 parks From 2019 to 2026
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Purple Sunbird

The purple sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus) is a small bird in the sunbird family. It occurs in parts of the Arabian peninsula and South and Southeast Asia. It has a fast and direct flight and can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird but often perches at the base of flowers. It feeds mainly on nectar and insects, especially when feeding young. The males can appear all black in harsh sunlight but the purple iridescence is visible on closer observation or under good light conditions. Females are olive above and yellowish below.

The purple sunbird has a relatively short bill, a dark and short square ended tail with distinctive sexual dimorphism. Less than 10 cm (3.9 in) long they have a down-curved bill with brush-tipped tubular tongues that aid in nectar feeding. The male is glossy metallic bluish to purplish black on the upper parts with the wings appearing dark brown. The breeding male also has underparts of the same purplish black, but non-breeding males may show a central streak of black on yellow underparts. In the breeding plumage, the male can be confused with the syntopic Loten's sunbird which has a longer, more downcurved bill, lacks a supercilium, and has... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:41

Cambodia · 2026

© JJSUN · XC1103615 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:09

India · 2026

© Ding Li Yong · XC1085964 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Song and call0:55

India · 2025

© Peter Boesman · XC1030506 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Gir National Park 🇮🇳 India
~60%
2 Bandhavgarh National Park 🇮🇳 India
~50%
3 Keoladeo National Park 🇮🇳 India
~50%
4 Yala National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~50%
5 Mudumalai National Park 🇮🇳 India
~50%
6 Ranthambore National Park 🇮🇳 India
~50%
7 Udawalawe National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~40%
8 Kanha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~40%
9 Satpura National Park 🇮🇳 India
~40%
10 Royal Bardia National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~40%
11 Bandipur National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
12 Minneriya National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~30%
13 Nagarhole National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
14 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~20%
15 Jim Corbett National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
16 Sundarbans National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
17 Doi Inthanon National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
~20%
18 Periyar National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
19 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~10%
20 Manas National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
21 Eravikulam National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
22 Sinharaja Forest Reserve 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
23 Kaziranga National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
24 Horton Plains National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
25 Kaeng Krachan National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
26 Khao Yai National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Jalandhar 🇮🇳 India
~90%
2 Raipur 🇮🇳 India
~80%
3 Hyderabad 🇮🇳 India
~80%
4 Dubai 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
~80%
5 Abu Dhabi 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
~80%
6 Ahmedabad 🇮🇳 India
~80%
7 Indore 🇮🇳 India
~80%
8 Kanpur 🇮🇳 India
~80%
9 Rajkot 🇮🇳 India
~70%
10 Solapur 🇮🇳 India
~70%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Purple Sunbird in Vijayawada?

Likely

About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Purple Sunbird sighting in Vijayawada on a given day, based on 126 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 10th most-seen of the 93 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Purple Sunbird in Vijayawada?

August

In that month about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Purple Sunbird in Vijayawada on a given day, against about 30% in January, the lowest month. That is one of Vijayawada's wettest months, with about 180 mm of rain against 5 mm in January. September has too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Purple Sunbird?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Purple Sunbird sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Vijayawada the best place to see a Purple Sunbird?

23rd of 76

Of the 76 cities where we can rate Purple Sunbird sightings, Vijayawada ranks 23rd at about 60%. The best odds are in Jalandhar (India, about 90%), Raipur (India, about 80%) and Hyderabad (India, about 80%).

Where does the Purple Sunbird sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Purple Sunbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Vijayawada (126 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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