As I watched a Purple Sunbird drink nectar from an Aloe Vera flower in my garden, I wondered, “If biopics were made on the lives of birds, who could do justice to the role of the Purple Sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus)?” The name that instantly came to mind was the popular Hindi film actor, Ranveer Singh. Bright, colourful and super energetic. Wooing his partner passionately through his antics, Ranveer Singh would perfectly play the Purple Sunbird. You can’t just be a good dancer, you have to be colourful as well to be a Purple Sunbird.
When I first started bird watching, I was surprised when I was told that the
olive-brownish bird I was looking at, was called a Purple Sunbird. The bird gets its name from the purple-coloured male. This quality of distinct features in sexes is called sexual dimorphism. The avian world is not spared from patriarchy, I wondered. The bird is named based on the looks of the male
bird. They could have named it an Olive Sunbird.
The Purple Sunbird is not Ranveer Singh all year round. The plumage of a male
Purple Sunbird is a glamorous dark purple with shades of green, blue and
maroon only during breeding season. By the end of breeding season, it loses its shiny purple colour and wears lots of yellow. Still good-looking, this non-breeding plumage is known as eclipse plumage. Our avian hero takes a break from trying to impress his ladylove. The first time I saw a Purple Sunbird in an eclipse plumage, I thought it was a juvenile bird. As I saw more of them, I realised it was the bird’s non-breeding look. A bit like the airport or gym looks of our film heroes and heroines. The females stay the same all year – olive brown to shades of grey, washed-out yellow underparts. You could call it the zero makeup look.
The singing skills have also been left to the male counterparts. I heard a pleasant musical sound at my window one day. I opened the curtain. Purple Sunbirds were peeping through my window, making soft gentle musical noises. On another occasion, I saw a baby Purple Sunbird sitting on the floor. Ranveer Singh in the making, it had probably jumped off from its nest. I tried to secure it as much as possible and asked my domestic help to keep a watch on it from a distance to protect it from predators. When I came to check on it a few hours later, it was gone. Its loving parents probably took it away.
You can see breeding male Purple sunbirds on branches of trees in gardens,
parks and forests, showing off their beauty by fluttering their wings in front of
the females. Watching the Purple Sunbirds romance on a tree outside my house, I was reminded of the most commonly used phrase to describe romance in Hindi films, dancing around trees. Dancing Sunbirds are as energetic and colourful as Ranveer.
Photos and content by Prerna Jain