Cinnyris jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

Male olive-backed sunbird have more vibrant colors than females, as what all the birds have, but it is more colorful when they encounter a habitat that have the same colors as them. Representing how the almighty paint the world, as with this image. Photo taken: Brgy. Gusa, Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines
Domzjuniorwildlife · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
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.
Wikipedia contributors, Garden sunbird; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T13:52:01.105798+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Cinnyris jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Cinnyris
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyNectariniidae Vigors, 1825
- genusCinnyris Cuvier, 1816
- speciesCinnyris jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Cinnyris. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Cinnyris humbloti Milne-Edwards & Oustalet, 1885 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris lotenius (Linnaeus, 1766) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris manoensis Reichenow, 1907 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris congensis (Oort, 1910) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris sovimanga (Gmelin, 1788) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris usambaricus Grote, 1922 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris minullus Reichenow, 1899 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris neergaardi Grant, 1908 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris afer (Linnaeus, 1766) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Southern Double-collared SunbirdCinnyris chalybeus (Linnaeus, 1766) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Splendid SunbirdCinnyris coccinigastrus (Latham, 1802) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cinnyris johannae J. Verreaux & E. Verreaux, 1851 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Nectarinia jugularis (Linnaeus, 1766) (Linnaeus, 1766) | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=916461 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:5Z75C. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.