Garden sunbird
Cinnyris jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766)
The garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis) is a species in the family Nectariniidae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 8.45 g to 9.75 g and live up to 9 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Quick facts about the garden sunbird
- Weight
- 8.45 g – 9.75 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2.2 – 2.4src for Young per litter or clutch
- Litters or clutches a year
- 2src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the garden sunbird live?
Not recorded
What is the garden sunbird?
The garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis), previously known as the olive-backed sunbird, is a species of passerine bird in the family Nectariniidae that is found in the Philippines except on the Palawan island group. It was formerly considered to be conspecific with seven other species: the ornate sunbird, Palawan sunbird, Sahul sunbird, Tukangbesi sunbird, Flores Sea sunbird, South Moluccan sunbird and the Mamberamo sunbird.
It is a small, brightly coloured bird with olive-green plumage on the wings and back with a bright yellow chest. It has a long downward-curved bill it uses for taking nectar and capturing insects. It is primarily nectarivorous, but will take insects and spiders, particularly when feeding chicks.
From the Wikipedia article “Garden sunbird” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Garden_sunbird&oldid=1313845121), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the garden sunbird endangered?
The garden sunbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the garden sunbird classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyNectariniidae
- genusCinnyris
- SpeciesCinnyris jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Synonyms Nectarinia jugularis
Other names and names in other languages (52)
- Olive-backed sunbirdEnglish
- Olive-backed sunbirdEnglish
- Philippine olive-backed sunbirdEnglish
- Philippine yellow-bellied sunbirdEnglish
- suimanga de dors olivaciCatalan
- tamsiCebuano
- strdimil olivovohřbetýCzech
- Aderyn haul cefn melynwyrddWelsh
- Olivenrygget SolfuglDanish
- GrünrückennektarvogelGerman
- Grünrücken-NektarvogelGerman
- ĝardena nektarinioEsperanto
- Suimanga dorsiolivaSpanish
- شهدخوار پشتزیتونیPersian
- oliivimedestäjäFinnish
- filippiinienoliivimedestäjäFinnish
- Souimanga à dos vertFrench
- blistavoprsi medosasCroatian
- ausztrál nektármadárHungarian
- Burung madu srigantiIndonesian
- Burung-madu srigantiIndonesian
- Nettarinia dorsolivaItalian
- Nettarinia dorsoliva delle FilippineItalian
- Nettarinia ventregiallo delle FilippineItalian
- キバラタイヨウチョウJapanese
- žalsvanugarė spalvingoji nektarinaLithuanian
- Burung Kelicap BukitMalay
- OlijfrughoningzuigerDutch
- Filipijnse HoningzuigerDutch
- StaalborsthoningzuigerDutch
- olivenryggsolfuglNorwegian
- nektarnik ciemnogardłyPolish
- زیتونی مگر رس پنچھیWestern Panjabi
- nectarínia-dos-jardinsPortuguese
- beija-flor-de-dorso-verdePortuguese
- nectarínia-de-dorso-oliváceoPortuguese
- Синегрудая нектарницаRussian
- Желтобрюхая нектарницаRussian
- Желтогорлая нектарницаRussian
- nektárovka zelenochrbtáSlovak
- Sunčica maslinastih leđaSerbian
- trädgårdssolfågelSwedish
- Olivryggig solfågelSwedish
- นกกินปลีอกเหลืองThai
- นกกินปลีฟิลิปปินส์Thai
- Zeytuni Sırtlı NektarkuşuTurkish
- маріка жовточереваUkrainian
- Hút mật họng tímVietnamese
- 黃腹花蜜鳥Chinese
- 菲律宾花蜜鸟Chinese
- 菲律賓花蜜鳥Chinese
- 黄腹花蜜鸟Chinese
Relatives of the garden sunbird
Other species in the same genus Cinnyris.

Purple sunbird
Cinnyris asiaticus

Palestine sunbird
Cinnyris osea

Southern double-collared sunbird
Cinnyris chalybeus
Purple-banded sunbird
Cinnyris bifasciatus
Olive-bellied sunbird
Cinnyris chloropygius
Copper sunbird
Cinnyris cupreus
CompareGarden sunbird vs Purple sunbirdGarden sunbird vs Palestine sunbirdGarden sunbird vs Southern double-collared sunbirdGarden sunbird vs Purple-banded sunbird
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the garden sunbird?
An adult garden sunbird weighs 8.45 g – 9.75 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the garden sunbird endangered?
The garden sunbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the garden sunbird live?
The garden sunbird has a recorded lifespan of 9 years.
What kind of animal is the garden sunbird?
The garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis) belongs to the family Nectariniidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/garden-sunbird
“Garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/garden-sunbird.
@misc{garden_sunbird_2026,
title = {Garden sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/garden-sunbird},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}