Grey-breasted Spiderhunter

Common name for a species of passerine bird with the scientific designation Arachnothera modesta. It belongs to the family Nectariniidae, which also encompasses Sunbirds, a similar bird species but with shorter bills. Adults are greenish olive above, with some darker colouring towards the wing and tail tips, while the underside is a greyish white with thin streaks, which are absent in juveniles. It has a long, blackish, downward-curved bill which allows it to feed on the nectar from long and narrow flowers. Hence, the Grey-breasted Spiderhunter is often found feeding on the nectar of the Flame of the Forest (fig.), which it can easily reach with its long, downward-curved bill that can reach deep into these large flowers. Besides nectar, it also catches insects, such as spiders, especially when feeding its young. In Thai, it is known as nok plih kluay thong thao (นกปลีกล้วยท้องเทา), literally ‘grey-bellied banana inflorescence (fig.) bird’. See also List of Thai Animal Names and TRAVEL PICTURES. 回