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sugarbird
Sign in to saveThe sugarbirds are a small genus, Promerops, and family, Promeropidae, of passerine birds, restricted to southern Africa. In general appearance and habits, they resemble large, long-tailed sunbirds or some of the Australian honeyeaters, but are not closely related to the former and are even more distantly related to the latter. They have brownish plumage, the long downcurved bill typical of passerine nectar feeders, and long tail feathers.
Article
8 sectionsContents
- Taxonomy and systematics
- Genetic diversity
- Species
- Description
- Distribution and habitat
- Behaviour and ecology
- References
- External links
The sugarbirds are a small genus, Promerops, and family, Promeropidae, of passerine birds, restricted to southern Africa. In general appearance and habits, they resemble large, long-tailed sunbirds or some of the Australian honeyeaters, but are not closely related to the former and are even more distantly related to the latter. They have brownish plumage, the long downcurved bill typical of passerine nectar feeders, and long tail feathers.
==Taxonomy and systematics== The genus Promerops was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 with the Cape sugarbird (Promerops cafer) as the type species. The name of the genus combines the Ancient Greek προ pro "close to" or "similar" and the genus Merops that contains the bee-eaters.