Leptocoma minima
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The crimson-backed sunbird or small sunbird (Leptocoma minima) is a sunbird endemic to the Western Ghats of India. Like other sunbirds, they feed mainly on nectar although they take insects, especially to feed their young. They are tiny birds that are resident and are found in forests but are particularly attracted to gardens at the edge of the forest where people grow suitable flower-bearing plants. They usually perch while taking nectar.
Crimson-backed sunbirds are tiny, even by sunbird standards, and are only 8 cm long. They have medium-length thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations for nectar feeding. The adult male is velvety red on the mantle and wing coverts and there is a broad red breast band. The crown is shiny green and there are pink-violet patches on the throat and rump. The underside from the breast below is yellowish. There is a black edge to the bib that separates the yellow of the underside. The larger purple-rumped sunbird can appear very similar but this sunbird has a darker maroon on the upper side while the flanks and vent are whitish. The eclipse plumage (non-breeding) of the male has more olive on the head and... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Eravikulam National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Crimson-backed Sunbird sighting in Nagarhole National Park on a given day, based on 184 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 119th most-seen of the 272 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July to September
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Crimson-backed Sunbird in Nagarhole National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and November, the lowest months. Those are among Nagarhole National Park's wettest months, with about 220 mm of rain a month against 10 mm in February.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Crimson-backed Sunbird sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Crimson-backed Sunbird sightings, Nagarhole National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Periyar National Park (India, about 20%) and Mudumalai National Park (India, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Crimson-backed Sunbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Nagarhole National Park (184 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
