CreatureData

Orange-breasted sunbird

Anthobaphes violacea (Linnaeus, 1766)

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea) is a species in the family Nectariniidae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 8.95 g to 10 g and live up to 5 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea)
Photo: Der Berzerker from Washington, DC, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the orange-breasted sunbird

Weight
8.95 g – 10 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
5 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Nectarivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
shrublandsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
14.5 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
1.7src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
11.9 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
2.5src 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

Photos of the orange-breasted sunbird

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea)
Ragnhild&Neil Crawford from Sweden · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the orange-breasted sunbird live?

Not recorded

What is the orange-breasted sunbird?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea) is a species of small, predominantly nectar-feeding bird that is endemic to the fynbos shrubland biome of southwestern South Africa. It is the only member of the genus Anthobaphes, in the family Nectariniidae (the sunbirds and spiderhunters), though it is sometimes placed in the genus Nectarinia. The birds are sexually dimorphic, with females being olive green while the males are orange to yellow on the underside with bright green, blue and purple on the head and neck.

From the Wikipedia article “Orange-breasted sunbird” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Orange-breasted_sunbird&oldid=1381256338), 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 orange-breasted sunbird endangered?

The orange-breasted sunbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the orange-breasted sunbird classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyNectariniidae
  6. genusAnthobaphes
  7. SpeciesAnthobaphes violacea (Linnaeus, 1766)

Synonyms Athobaphes violacea, Certhia violacea, Nectarinia violacea

Other names and names in other languages (29)
  • OBSUEnglish
  • OranjeborssuikerbekkieAfrikaans
  • suimanga de pit carbassaCatalan
  • strdimil zlatoprsýCzech
  • Orangebrystet SolfuglDanish
  • Goldbrust-NektarvogelGerman
  • oranĝbrusta nektarinioEsperanto
  • Suimanga pechinaranjaSpanish
  • kapinmedestäjäFinnish
  • Souimanga orangéFrench
  • Souimanga à poitrine doréeFrench
  • narančastoprsi medosasCroatian
  • fokföldi nektármadárHungarian
  • Nettarinia pettoarancioItalian
  • オナガゴシキタイヨウチョウJapanese
  • rusvakrūtė nektarinaLithuanian
  • OranjeborsthoningzuigerDutch
  • fynbossolfuglNorwegian
  • nektarnik przylądkowyPolish
  • nectarínia-alaranjadaPortuguese
  • beija-flor-de-peito-laranjaPortuguese
  • Оранжевобрюхая нектарницаRussian
  • Фиолетовоспинная нектарницаRussian
  • nektárovka zlatoprsáSlovak
  • orangebröstad solfågelSwedish
  • Turuncu Göğüslü NektarkuşuTurkish
  • нектарка капськаUkrainian
  • 橙胸花蜜鳥Chinese
  • 橙胸花蜜鸟Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the orange-breasted sunbird

Other species in the same family Nectariniidae.

CompareOrange-breasted sunbird vs Purple sunbirdOrange-breasted sunbird vs Crimson sunbirdOrange-breasted sunbird vs Purple-rumped sunbirdOrange-breasted sunbird vs Brown-throated sunbird

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the orange-breasted sunbird?

An adult orange-breasted sunbird weighs 8.95 g – 10 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the orange-breasted sunbird endangered?

The orange-breasted sunbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the orange-breasted sunbird live?

The orange-breasted sunbird has a recorded lifespan of 5 years.

What kind of animal is the orange-breasted sunbird?

The orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea) 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.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/orange-breasted-sunbird

MLA

“Orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/orange-breasted-sunbird.

BibTeX
@misc{orange_breasted_sunbird_2026,
  title = {Orange-breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/orange-breasted-sunbird},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}