- Lagonosticta rufopicta
Identification
9–10 cm (3½-4 in)
- Pink forehead, lores and sides of head
- Grey brown crown and neck
- Brown back and wings
- Yellow brown lower belly and under tail coverts
- Pink upper belly with dark rimmed white spots
- Red upper tail coverts
Female similar but duller
Distribution
Africa:
Western Africa: Senegambia, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo
Eastern Africa: South Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- L. r. rufopicta:
- L. r. lateritia:
- South Sudan, western Ethiopia, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and western Kenya
Habitat
Tall grass and brush in savanna near river banks.
Behaviour
Breeding
Broad-leaved grass is used to build the nest, which is lined with feathers and they are placed in dense grass or bushes. The four eggs are cared for by both parents.
Diet
The diet consists of small seeds, especially of grasses, and some insects.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Avibase
- The Finch Handbook, Christa Koepff, April Romagnano
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2016)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Bar-breasted Firefinch. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Bar-breasted_Firefinch
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
