Breeding Buff-throated Sunbirds

Written by Paul Setterington

Tuesday, 02 June 2009

Chalcomitra adelberti The Buff-throated Sunbird is a small - medium size Sunbird that originates from north west Africa and can be found in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and through into Cameroon . The sexes like most Sunbirds are easy to tell apart the cock has a bright metalic green crown the rest of the head chin and upper throat black apart from metalic green moustache back of the head and down the back black wings shining light chestnut lower throat a light buff colour forming a large bib bordered with black underparts and lower belly darker chestnut tail dark brown legs and beak black . The female head wings and back light olive-brown the throat and lower belly whitish-grey with olive-brown streaks. In the April of 2007 apair was placed in a small tropical flight ( measuring 9 foot along the back 4 foot up one side and 7 foot up the otherside built in a wedge shape) with a pair of yellow-winged sugurbirds ( red-legged honeycreepers) . With nothing happening that summer the birds were left to overwinter in that flight the birds where still in that flight in the summer of 2008 when in the middle of June a pair of Splendid Sunbirds were causing trouble with the occupants of another flight so it was decided to swop the Buff-throated and sugarbirds with the splendids . The Buff-throated were only in their new flight 3 days when the hen was seen trying to attach bits of dried leaf to a vine of a passion flower so a tear-shaped nest basket was picked and tied to the vine where the hen was trying to build a nest. Not knowing if she would take to the basket was soon answered when the hen went stright to inspect the ready made nest . Over the next 2 weeks the hen lined the basket with cotton wool and formed a canopy over the nest hole with green hamster bedding,small dry dead leaves and small feathers she picked up around the flight . On the 6th of July the first egg was laid with a second being laid the following day . As with most Sunbirds incubation lasted 14 days and was done by the hen only during this time the cock bird was taken out because he wouldn.t leave the hen to site properly . On July 20th the hen was seen searching the flight for livefood indicating the first egg had hatched . So began the search for livefood (spiders) , with my brother working nights and me days there was always usually someone there to provide what was needed . The first livefood of the day was given at around 6am at which time between 10 to 20 items were taken then the hen would settle down to brood the youngster or youngsters because at this time we had no idea how many where in the nest . Five days after the serch for livefood began I had the first chance to inspect the nest on doing so found only one egg had hatched the second egg had been punched and was stuck to the nest lining , this was disapointing but made the search for livefood easier . The youngster grow fast and at 10 days could be seen beak agape at the nest enterance when the hen approched quickly disappearing back inside once the transfer of food was completed . At this time the youngster was being fed up to 160 spiders a day as well as a little sponge cake soaked with honeywater plus nectar. From 14 days old the youngster was sitting on the edge of the nest enterance looking ready to leave it this for another two days then early on the seventeenth day after hatching the hen was taking food to the nest but no sign of the youngster she did this a few times before flying low into the vegetation where the chick appeared and was duly fed by its mother . For the next two days the youngster stayed low and hidden beforegaining strength and confidence in flying after that it would follow its mother wanting to be fed until it discovered the nectar tubes . At which point anyone that has bred Sunbirds will tell you the hard work ( apart from unfortunate mishaps ) is just about done . Four days after leaving the nest it did find the tubes and started feeding its self . The youngster was left with the hen for a further two week or so it would still beg for food but was capable of looking after itself by now . When the hen was seen tidying up the nest the youngster was taken out and replaced with the cockbird after which two more eggs were laid that turned out to be infertile . Another round of eggs was laid after that which did produce another chick that disappeared from the nest after five days . At this point the hen was brought inside for the winter as it was getting late into October . The chick has moulted out now and is a hen . Good news because it will be paired to another unrelated cockbird which we have .

 

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