Dr. E. Hopkinson—Sunbirds



149



in its own country, where it lives for a long time on sugar-water,

biscuit, and milk, given alternately with honey ” ( Nzig ., p. 107).


Vigors’ Yellow-backed Sunbird (JE. siparaja vigorsii (Sykes)).

Hab. : West Coast of India. Plate : Shelley, Mon., pi. 23. First

imported 1931, when the Zoo Report gives : “ a-o, deposited July:

new to the collection.”


Nepal Yellow-backed Sunbird (M. n. nipalensis (Hodgs.)). Hab.:

East Himalayas. Plates : Shelley, Mon., pi. 10 ; Nat. Libr., xiv,

pi. 27.


Horsfield’s Yellow-backed Sunbird (M. nipalensis horsfieldi

(Blyth)). Hab. : Himalayas, Garhwal to Kuman. Plate : Shelley,

Mon., pi. 10. First imported before 1925 ; ? exact date. Mr. Ezra

has had both these Sunbirds and Mr. Chaplin obtained one of

the second recently, but it was in bad condition and soon died.


Loten’s Sunbird ( Leptocoma lotenia (Linn)). Hab. : South India and

Ceylon. Plates : Shelley, Mon., pi. 56 ; Nat. Libr., xvi, pi., p. 260.

“ Seldom imported, but one was in the Berlin Zoo for a long time ”

{Nzig., p. 108), and Mr. Ezra has had it (Avic., i, p. 251).


Purple Sunbird (L. a. asiatica (Lath.)). Z. 619. Hab. : India and

Ceylon. Plates : Shelley, Mon., pi. 57 ; Nat. Libr., xvi, pi. 24 ;

B.N., 1916, pi., p. 17. Date of first importation uncertain, but

probably in 1897 by Finn. Nzig., p. 108, says : “ The most

frequently imported of all Sunbirds, . . . love play, . . . can be

kept in the open . . and young have been hatched at the Zoo

and eggs were laid with Mr. Brook in Scotland (Avic., i, p. 255).

Other references : A.M., 1899, p. 41 ; 1911, p. 201 ; 1913, p. 327 ;

1918, p. 154 ; B.N., 1911, pp. 101, 131 ; 1913, p. 40 ; 1915, p. 19 ;

1916, pi., p. 17. Mr. Chaplin now has a pair of the more brilliantly-

coloured sub-species, L. a. intermedia (Hume), which ranges from

East Bengal to South China.


Van Hasselt’s Sunbird (L. brasiliana (6m., 1788), Nectarinia hasseltii

(Temm. and Laugier, 1825)). Hab. : Malaya to Assam ; Java,

Sumatra, Borneo. Plates: Shelley, Mon., pi. 42 ; Nat. Libr.,

xvi, pi. 22 First imported in 1929 for Mr. Ezra ; the two birds

he then obtained were still alive in 1932. See also UOiseau,

1930, p. 504.



