Cinnamon-breasted Bunting

Photo by Tichodroma
Namibia, December 2007

Emberiza tahapisi

Identification

13–15 cm (5-6 in), mass 15 g
Adult male: Head boldly striped black and white; mantle to upper tail coverts cinnamon with dark brown markings.Tail and flight feathers dark brown, edged cinnamon. Underparts cinnamon.
Adult female: Similar to the male, but paler; above less reddish.

Distribution

First winter
Photo by ammadoux
Sallalh, Oman, August 2016

Africa south of the Sahara and the Middle East
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi
Southern Africa: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho and Swaziland
Middle East: Arabian Peninsula: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Socotra, Oman

Taxonomy

Gosling's Bunting was formerly included in this species.

Subspecies

There are generally 4 subspecies recognised^[1]:

• E. t.tahapisi:

• Gabon to Uganda, southern Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Africa

• E. t.septemstriata:

• Sudan east of the Nile to western and northern Ethiopia

• E. t.arabica:

• Southern Arabia (Asir to Hadhramaut)

• E. t.insularis:

• Socotra Island (off north-eastern Somalia)

Subspecies nivenorum is not generally recognised^[2].

Habitat

Rocky hillsides and eroded areas and croplands, favoring patches of bare soil.

Behaviour

Some birds migrate but patterns of movement are not clear, others are resident. Solitary, in pairs, or in small groups.

Diet

Forages on the ground for seeds, fresh green leaves a wide variety of insects and nectar.

Vocalisation

A pleasant twitter.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Hockey, PAR, WRJ Dean, and PG Ryan, eds. 2005. Roberts' Birds of Southern Africa. 7th ed. Cape Town: John Voelcker Bird Book Fund. ISBN 978-0620340533
4. Fry H, Keith S,Woodcook M & Willis I. 2004. Birds of Africa Vol VII: Sparrows to Buntings. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0713665319
5. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved August 2016)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Cinnamon-breasted Bunting. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 23 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Cinnamon-breasted_Bunting

External Links

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