[3] Bates's sunbird is an uncommon resident of forest and rainforest from Liberia in the west to the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo in the east, occurring south as far as Angola and northern Zambia.

[4] Bates's sunbirds feed on nectar from blossoms on flowering trees, Macaranga assas is known to be fed on.

[4] The nest is a hanging pocket made of pappus, dry leaves and spiders webs with green moss placed on the outside and lined with natural cotton-like fibres, it is suspended from a bush at about 3m above the ground or even from cables in abandoned buildings.

1-2 eggs are laid in July in Cameroon, December in the Democratic Republic of Congo and February in Gabon.

[4] Its common name and Latin binomial commemorate George Latimer Bates (1863–1940), an American naturalist who traveled in West Africa.