The scarlet-backed flowerpecker is a species of passerine bird in the flowerpecker family Dicaeidae. Sexually dimorphic, the male has navy blue upperparts with a bright red streak down its back from its crown to its tail coverts, while the female and juvenile are predominantly olive green. It is found in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and occasionally gardens in a number of countries throughout South and East Asia.
The first time I saw this bird was when we visited the Hive, the famed building at Nanyang Technology University. At top floor of the Hive, I heard incessant bird chirpings, and spotted this tiny bird with red head, yellow throat, grey belly and dark feathers.
We encountered this tiny bird again when we visited the Woodland Botanic Garden in July.
We heard the bird chirping first and then spotted in a flowering tree. A male scarlet-backed flowerpecker was pecking flowers, flapping its wings like a humming bird.
I suspect that we saw the female scarlet-backed flowerpecker as well but might miss-identify it as Olive-backed sunbird.
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| female scarlet-backed flowerpecker - from Wikipedia |
