Name: Sunbirds of the World: Sunbirds, Flowerpeckers, Spiderhunters and Sugarbirds 2nd Edition
Author: Robert A. Cheke (Author), Clive F. Mann (Author), Richard Allen (Artist)
ISBN: 9781472937438

Sunbirds of the World: Sunbirds, Flowerpeckers, Spiderhunters and Sugarbirds 2nd Edition book cover

Sunbirds of the World: Sunbirds, Flowerpeckers, Spiderhunters and Sugarbirds 2nd Edition

Author(s): Robert A. Cheke (Author), Clive F. Mann (Author), Richard Allen (Artist)

Publisher: Helm
Publication Date: August 12, 2025
Edition: 2nd
Language: English
Print length: 608 pages
ISBN-10: 1472937430
ISBN-13: 9781472937438

Book Description

'This is a gorgeous book about some of the world's most gorgeous birds.' JARED DIAMOND

Sunbirds are among the most striking of all bird groups; their dazzling iridescent plumage and long curved bills are conspicuous when the birds visit garden flowers on sunny days to feed on nectar. Some species - especially the females - are duller in appearance and harder to spot, feeding mostly on insects high up in forest canopies. Spiderhunters, as their name suggests, feed extensively on spiders, while sunbirds' other close relatives, the flowerpeckers, are especially partial to mistletoe berries.

This book is the last word on sunbird identification, ecology and behaviour. Now in its second edition, it has been fully revised and updated to reflect the many developments that have occurred in sunbird taxonomy, as well as the new research that has been published on their biology. It covers all 218 currently recognised species, providing details of key identification features, voice, habitat, distribution, conservation status, movements, food and behaviour. New colour art by award-winning artist Richard Allen has been added, and hundreds of high-quality colour photographs beautifully capture every species. Maps accurately depict geographical distributions of each taxon to subspecies level.

This beautiful book is the definitive reference to the sunbirds, flowerpeckers, spiderhunters and sugarbirds of the world, and is essential reading for researchers, birders and conservationists alike.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This is a gorgeous book about some of the world's most gorgeous birds: sunbirds and their allies. They are often compared to jewels because of their small size and bright or iridescent colors. As striking as their appearances are their behaviors – flowerpeckers skin mistletoe berries as neatly as waiters in Michelin 3-star restaurants peel fruit. Read this updated volume, enjoy its photos and maps and text, and then go see these jewels for yourself!” ―Jared Diamond

“This splendid Helm Identification Guide has been extensively updated, following a completely updated taxonomy, and with the inclusion of a superb collection of photos, and larger maps, in colour ... Wonderfully illustrated and an informative book to browse before any birding trip” ―Frank Lambert, Frank Lambert Birding

“This second edition of Sunbirds of the World is an indispensable and definitive guide ... Its strength lies in its comprehensive integration of updated taxonomic frameworks and the critical analysis of emerging molecular data alongside traditional morphological and behavioural insights. The detailed anatomical, physiological, and ecological information, including novel discussions on tongue mechanics, plumage development, and parasite dynamics, provides a rich scientific foundation” ―Dr Amar-Singh HSS, Malaysian Bird Report

About the Author

Robert A. Cheke is Professor of Tropical Zoology at the Natural Resources Institute of the University of Greenwich. Before university, he qualified as a grade A bird ringer and worked as a field assistant at the British Trust for Ornithology. After graduating with a PhD in zoology at the University of Leeds, he held various posts in academia before becoming employed at the Centre for Overseas Pest Research (then part of the Ministry for Overseas Development). Robert's work has frequently taken him to sub-Saharan Africa, where he has been able to follow his passion for sunbirds. He is the co-author of The Birds of Togo (1996), has edited or co-edited six further books and published more than 500 scientific papers. Robert was awarded a DSc by the University of Greenwich for his extensive research work in 2021.

The late Clive F. Mann (1942–2022) taught biology in schools in Africa, South-east Asia and England. During the course of extensive fieldwork carried out during long sojourns in the tropics, he studied the population dynamics, breeding cycles, zoogeography and migration of birds, and the subject of his PhD was the taxonomy of passerines. Clive was a Fellow of the Linnean Society and a member of the British Ornithologists' Union, and he served for many years on the Committee of the British Ornithologists' Club, becoming its chairman from 2001 to 2005. He was also a trustee of the Trust for Avian Systematics (previously the Trust for Oriental Ornithology) for more than 20 years. He wrote numerous papers in scientific journals, The Birds of Borneo BOU Checklist and was a co-author of the Helm Identification Guide: Cuckoos of the World.

Richard Allen won the British Birds Bird Illustrator of the Year award in 1993, and since then his work has appeared in various books and journals including Sunbirds, Cuckoos of the World and Birds of Paradise and Bowerbirds. He lives on the Essex coast and often escapes the studio to sketch the waders and wildfowl that throng the local estuaries. Richard was elected to the Society of Wildlife Artists in 2016 and he won the Birdwatch and Swarovski Optik Artist of the Year award in 2023.

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