
Photo: Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Dicaeum cruentatum
Diet
Fruit, including figs of Ficus fistulosa and F. grossularoides
Habitat
Subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, wooded areas and gardens, up to 1,000m; pouch-shaped nest hanging from a branch high in a tree, with a side entrance
Range
Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam
Size
9cm
Weight
7–8g
The scarlet-backed flowerpecker is a small, short-tailed bird, 9 cm long and 7–8 g, found up to 1,000 m in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, wooded areas and gardens. It is sexually dimorphic: the male has navy-blue upperparts, face, wings and tail with a broad bright red streak down its back from the crown to the upper tail coverts, while the female and juvenile are predominantly olive-green. It is found across Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam (Wikipedia, general species account).
It has been observed feeding on the figs of Ficus fistulosa and F. grossularoides in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in Singapore. It weaves a pouch-shaped nest hanging from a branch high in a tree, with a side entrance typical of the flowerpecker family (Wikipedia, general species account).