Diversity and distribution of birds of the family Nectariniidae “sunbirds” in Angola. Implications for environmental education and ecotourism.
Keywords:
Conservation , Environmental education , ISCED-HuílaAbstract
The sunbirds (family Nectariniidae) are small passerine birds of remarkable ecological and aesthetic value, playing an important role in pollination and ecological balance. These birds serve as attractive elements for environmental education and for the promotion of ecotourism through birdwatching activities. In this study, the diversity and distribution of species within this family in Angola were analyzed using existing data from the Zoology Museum of ISCED-Huíla. Preliminary results indicate a high species richness within the family, comprising 6 genera and 31 species represented by approximately 2,402 specimens recorded in the collection. The main collectors responsible for these records include António Rosa Pinto, António Pereira, Domingos Sousa, and João Crawford Cabral. Their work was primarily conducted in the provinces of Huambo (Morro do Moco), Huíla (Tundavala), Malanje (Cangandala), and Cuanza Sul (Canjala, Ucua), showing notable geographical variations that reveal priority areas for conservation and ecological tourism. The information obtained contributes to birdwatching initiatives, ecological tourism, and the enhancement of citizens’ environmental awareness.
Downloads
References
Almeida, M. (2023). Aves da África Subsaariana. Editora Ornitológica Nacional.
Avibase (Lepage, D.). (2025). The Avibase Bird Database. http://avibase.bsc-eoc.org
Azevedo, H. J. C., Figueiró, R., Alves, D. R., Vieira, V., & Senna, A. R. (2012). O uso de coleções zoológicas como ferramenta didática no ensino superior: um relato de caso. Revista Práxis, 4(7).
Bento, C. M., Langa, R., & Muanha, V. (2018). Bird diversity and habitat use in coastal ecosystems of Mozambique. African Journal of Ecology, 56(3), 412–423. https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12567
BirdLife International. (2022). Species factsheet: Nectariniidae. https://www.birdlife.org
BirdLife International. (2023). State of the World’s Birds 2023: Indicators for our changing world. https://www.birdlife.org
Canadian Conservation Institute. (2017). Guidelines for collections: Natural history collections. Government of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/conservation-institute/services/preventive-conservation/guidelines-collections/natural-history.html
Cardoso, J. (2020). Diversidade de beija-flores em Angola. Revista de Ecologia Africana, 12(1), 45–58.
Cheke, R. A., & Mann, C. F. (2008). Sunbirds: A guide to the sunbirds, flowerpeckers, spiderhunters and sugarbirds of the world. Christopher Helm.
Cheke, R. A., & Mann, C. F. (2020). Family Nectariniidae (Sunbirds). In J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, & E. de Juana (Eds.), Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions.
Few, S. (2012). Show Me the Numbers: Designing Tables and Graphs to Enlighten (2nd ed.). Analytics Press.
Fry, C. H., Keith, S., & Urban, E. K. (2000). The birds of Africa. Volume VI: Picathartes to oxpeckers. Academic Press.
Huntley, B. J., Russo, V., Lages, F., & Ferrand, N. (2019). Biodiversity of Angola: Science & conservation: A modern synthesis (p. 549). Springer Nature.
Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE). (2016). Anuário estatístico de Angola. Luanda.
Johnson, S. D., & Nicolson, S. W. (2023). The ecology of bird pollination in Africa. Oxford University Press.
Kasoma, P. (2021). Sunbird diversity and plant-pollinator interactions in Ugandan montane forests. African Zoology, 56(4), 289–301. https://doi.org/10.1080/15627020.2021.1952034
Lemos, G. D. (2025). A importância das coleções científicas: um olhar especial para a Colebio (Coleção Odonatológica do Laboratório de Ecologia e Biodiversidade) da Universidade Federal de Sergipe.
Mbemba, A., & João, R. (2023). Ecoturismo baseado em aves em Angola. Cadernos de Turismo Sustentável, 7(3), 22–37.
Mills, M. (2013). The avifauna of the Angolan Central Plateau. Malimbus, 35(2), 109–133.
Mills, M. (2017). The Special Birds of Angola / As Aves Especiais de Angola. Go-Away Birding.
Mills, M., & Dean, W. R. J. (2021). The Birds of Angola: An annotated checklist. Tringa Press.
Mills, M., & Melo, M. (2013). The avifauna of Angola: Richness and endemism. Ornithology in Africa, 5(4), 77–95.
Mwangi, J. K., Odhiambo, R., & Otieno, N. E. (2022). Insectivory and foraging behavior of sunbirds in a fragmented forest landscape of East Africa. Ostrich, 93(1), 35–43. https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2022.1952034
Newmark, W. D., Stanley, W. T., & Goodman, S. M. (2020). Conservation status and ecological roles of African sunbirds. African Journal of Ecology, 58(3), 456–472. https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12745
Peterson, A. T., et al. (2014). Contributions of the Lubango Bird Collection to African ornithology. Journal of African Ornithology.
Silva, F., António, T., & Correia, R. (2021). Patterns of avian diversity across Angolan habitats: Implications for conservation. Ostrich, 92(2), 145–158. https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2021.1894123
Simmons, J. E. (2014). Museums, collections and biodiversity conservation. In G. Lefèvre & M. C. Thomas (Eds.), Biodiversity and Conservation in Museums (pp. 33–47). Routledge.
Urban, E. K., Fry, C. H., & Keith, S. (1997). The birds of Africa, Volume V: Thrushes to puffback flycatchers. Academic Press.
Vicente, F., Matos, C., & Cardoso, J. (2023). Aves e educação ambiental em Angola. Educa Verde, 5(1), 59–73.
Wieczorek, J., Bloom, D., Guralnick, R., Blum, S., Döring, M., Giovanni, R., … Vieglais, D. (2012). Darwin Core: An evolving community-developed biodiversity data standard. PLoS ONE, 7(1), e29715. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0029715
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Scientific journal of the ISCED-Huíla
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Este artigo está licenciado sob a licença: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Ao submeter o manuscrito o autor está ciente de que os direitos de autor passam para a Revista Científica do ISCED-Huíla.
_(2).png){kind=small}
1.png)
Esta revista está licenciada sob a licença: 