Orange-bellied Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma)

🐦 Orange-bellied Flowerpecker Overview

• Scientific name: Dicaeum trigonostigma
• Common name: Orange-bellied Flowerpecker
• Family: Dicaeidae (flowerpeckers)
• Size: 8–9 cm (very small!)
• Weight: ~7–12 grams

🌍 Distribution and Habitat

• Found throughout Southeast Asia, including:
  • Southern Thailand
  • Malaysia
  • Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Bali, Sulawesi, and other islands)
  • The Philippines
• Habitat:
  • Prefers lowland tropical rainforests, but also found in secondary forests, gardens, plantations, and even urban parks.
  • Found from sea level up to ~1,500 meters elevation, depending on location.

🍽 Diet

• Mainly frugivorous:
  • Feeds on small fruits, especially mistletoe berries and figs.
• Also eats:
  • Nectar (using its slightly curved bill and brush-tipped tongue).
  • Occasionally small insects and spiders for protein.
• Plays a vital role in pollination and seed dispersal of tropical plants.

🐦 Identification

• Male:
  • Striking bright orange belly.
  • Dark metallic blue-gray upperparts.
  • Small patch of orange-yellow on the rump.
  • Short, slightly decurved black bill.
• Female:
  • Duller overall: olive-gray upperparts, paler orange or yellowish belly.
  • Less contrast between back and belly than males.
• General:
  • Tiny, plump-bodied bird with a short tail.
  • Quick, flitting movements as it feeds.

🐣 Breeding and Behavior

• Builds a small hanging nest made of plant fibers, moss, and spider webs, often suspended from a slender twig or branch.
• Female typically incubates the eggs.
• Both parents feed the chicks.
• Behavior:
  • Active, energetic feeders, often in the upper forest canopy.
  • Sometimes join mixed-species foraging flocks.
  • Quiet compared to some other tropical birds, but makes soft high-pitched calls.

⚠ Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Least Concern (LC)
• Still fairly common across most of its wide range.
• Threats mainly include:
  • Habitat loss due to deforestation.
  • Local declines where lowland forests have been heavily cleared, but generally adaptable to secondary habitats.

🔎 Interesting Facts

• One of the most colorful and widespread flowerpecker species in Southeast Asia.
• The genus Dicaeum includes many tiny, brightly colored frugivorous birds highly specialized for feeding on mistletoes.
• Sometimes confused with other similar flowerpecker species; careful observation of belly color and back hue helps in identification.