Leptocoma

Leptocoma
Male purple-rumped sunbird (Leptocoma zeylonica)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Nectariniidae
Genus:	Leptocoma Cabanis, 1851
Type species
Nectarinia hasseltii Temminck, 1825
Species
See text

Leptocoma is a genus of sunbirds found from tropical South Asia to Papua New Guinea. Its members are sometimes included in Nectarinia.

The sunbirds are a group of very small Old World passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings. Most species can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird, but usually perch to feed.

Taxonomy

The genus was introduced by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis in 1850 with the type species as Nectarinia hasseltii Temminck 1825, a junior synonym of Certhia brasiliana Gmelin, JF, 1788, Van Hasselt's sunbird.[1][2][3] The name Leptocoma combines the Ancient Greek words leptos "delicate" or "fine" and komē "hair".[4]

Its six species in the genus are:[5]

Male	Female	Common Name	Scientific name	Distribution
		Purple-rumped sunbird	Leptocoma zeylonica	India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh
		Crimson-backed sunbird	Leptocoma minima	Western Ghats of India
		Purple-throated sunbird	Leptocoma sperata	the Philippines
		Van Hasselt's sunbird	Leptocoma brasiliana	Northeast India, Bangladesh and Southeast Asia
		Black sunbird	Leptocoma aspasia	eastern Indonesia and New Guinea
		Copper-throated sunbird	Leptocoma calcostetha	Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam

References

1. Cabanis, Jean; Heine, Ferdinand (1850). Museum Heineanum : Verzeichniss der ornithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand Heine, auf Gut St. Burchard vor Halberstadt (in German and Latin). Vol. 1. Halberstadt: R. Frantz. p. 104.
2. Paynter, Raymond A. Jr, ed. (1986). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 12. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 223.
3. Dickinson, E.C.; Christidis, L., eds. (2014). The Howard & Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. Vol. 2: Passerines (4th ed.). Eastbourne, UK: Aves Press. p. 271. ISBN 978-0-9568611-2-2.
4. Jobling, J.A. (2018). del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J.; Christie, D.A.; de Juana, E. (eds.). "Key to Scientific Names in Ornithology". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
5. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2018). "Dippers, leafbirds, flowerpeckers, sunbirds". World Bird List Version 8.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 9 May 2018.