Carmelite Sunbird (Chalcomitra fuliginosa) [XC351912]
by \u00c9tienne Leroy from Half Assini, Ghana (call)
Carmelite Sunbird (Chalcomitra fuliginosa) [XC703908]
by Mike Nelson from Half Assini, Ghana (song)
Subspecies
Forms a group with Green-throated Sunbird (Chalcomitra rubescens) and Amethyst Sunbird (Chalcomitra amethystina) and sometimes thought to form a superspecies with those, despite considerable geographical overlap, but all appear to hybridize occasionally in areas where they meet.
Proposed subspecies nigrescens (described from Brazzaville, in PRCongo), males of which have supposedly darker mantle, is treated as a synonym of nominate, but some authors have recommended its recognition for populations along lower R Congo.
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
aurea (Lesson, R, 1847) - Coasts from Sierra Leone east to Gabon and PRCongo.
fuliginosa (Shaw, 1812) - North-western Angola (including Cabinda) and lower R Congo (inland to Kwamouth, DRCongo).