It is endemic to the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.It is found in tropical moist montane forests above 1,500 meters above sea level.

Has a long, curved bill, a gray head, yellow underparts and rump, an olive back and wings, and a white-tipped tail.

Voice includes a rapid pulsing series of “chip!” notes and a high-pitched upslurred “chuuuuuit!” [2] The Apo sunbird was formally described in 1905 by the American ornithologist Edgar Alexander Mearns from specimens collected from Mount Apo on the island of Mindanao, Philippines.

[3] Three subspecies are recognised:[4] Aethopyga boltoni tibolii is separated as its own species called the Tboli sunbird under The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World.

However, there it is still affected by habitat loss through deforestation, mining, land conversion and slash-and-burn - just not to the same extent as lowland forest.