One wildlife photographer recently spotted an absolutely adorable sight at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserves.
Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi told Mothership that he visited the area on Oct. 2, and noticed a sunbird flitting around the foliage.
The tiny bird had found the perfect place for it to take a bath and wash its feathers — a small puddle of water collected in the middle of a large yam plant leaf.
Jusri observed the bird bathe for around 10 minutes.
Photo courtesy of Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi
Photo courtesy of Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi
Photo courtesy of Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi
While he has seen birds bathing at a stream or puddle of water on the floor, this is the first time he's seen a bird splashing about on a leaf.
Crimson sunbirds
The bird Jusri saw is a crimson sunbird — the species' males are known for their striking bright red plumage.
However, the individual spotted is a juvenile, and has yet to grow its colourful feathers. Only a small red patch can be seen on its throat.
Gif courtesy of Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi
Female crimson sunbirds on the other hand, are much duller in appearance, with dull olive-coloured upperparts.
The crimson sunbird is an uncommon resident in Singapore, but can be found in a variety of habitats and locations such as the Singapore Botanic Gardens and other nature reserves.
The birds are only around 11 to 13.5cm in size.
Singapore's national bird?
The crimson sunbird might actually be the unofficial national bird of Singapore.
In a poll conducted back in 2002 by the Nature Society Singapore (NSS), around 400 out of 1,038 people voted for the Crimson sunbird as Singapore's "national bird".
They felt that as the sunbird was small and red, the species bore some similarity to Singapore as a little red dot.
The Nature Society's bird group later wrote in a blog post that the bird is now the "official national bird of Singapore", and the announcement was also made by former NSS president Shawn Lum at the 2015 Asian Bird Fair, according to The Straits Times.
Lum later clarified that his announcement was not an official declaration.
No official status has ultimately been conferred to the bird.
Top photo courtesy of Mohamed Jusri Bin Bangi
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