Plain Flowerpecker Dicaeum minullum
Etymology:
- Dicaeum: Greek word dikaion supposedly an Indian bird
- Minullum : Latin word minulus- very small
Sub species :
- m. olivaceum – Himalayan foothills from Nepal to North East India (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland and Manipur)
Distribution in India: Himalayan foothills from Nepal to North East India (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, and Manipur)
Description: Size of 7·5–9 cm; 4–6 g. The adult is olive-brown upperparts, contrasting pale lores and supercilium, yellowish-white underparts, and a short, slender, and slightly curved all-dark bill.
Habitat: It is found in various forest types, including evergreen, moist deciduous, peat swamp, submontane heath, and montane forests, chiefly at the edges. It also is found in secondary growth forests, plantations, and other cultivation areas, as well as groves of trees in open country, and trees around habitation. It is found from Sea Level to 3600 m.
Food habits: It eats Insects, spiders, figs, fruits, and nectar of mistletoes. It forages in all storeys, but most frequently in canopy. It occurs singly, sometimes in pairs or in small groups.
Breeding habits: They breed in Mar–Sept. Both the sexes build nest, incubate eggs, tend nestlings and care for young. The nest is a very small hanging purse, constructed of fibres and vegetable down, above ground in tree or tall bush. They lay a clutch of 2–3 eggs.