- Euplectes axillaris
Identification
Length 15-17 cm. A short-tailed widowbird.
Breeding male: Black with red 'shoulders' and buff greater wing-coverts. The tail is fanned only in display.
Non-breeding male: Brown, streaked blackish; with black primaries and red 'shoulders'.
Female: Brown with blackish streaking above and reddish 'shoulders'.
Distribution
Widespread throughout Africa:
Western Africa
Mali, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Eastern Africa
Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Mafia Island, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi.
Southern Africa
Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Lesotho, eSwatini.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
Euplectes axillaris has five subspecies:[1]
- E. a. bocagei
- E. a. traversii
- Highlands of Ethiopia
- E. a. phoeniceus
- Southeastern Sudan, South Sudan, and western Ethiopia south through eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and western Kenya to eastern Zambia and northern Malawi
- E. a. zanzibaricus
- E. a. axillaris
- Malawi and Mozambique south to eastern South Africa
Habitat
Tall grassland, reedbeds and sugar cane fields.
Behaviour
Non-breeding birds forage in large flocks (often with other seed-eating species).
Diet
Diet is mainly grass seeds; also insects.
Vocalisation
The male sings from an elevated perch and in flight: a series of twittering and chirping sounds.
Breeding
Polygynous; male defends a territory of up to 0.6 ha and breeds with up to four females in a season. The oval nest is built using grass and has a side-top entrance. It is located in marsh or rank vegetation within 0.8 m of the ground. Two to three eggs are incubated for 12-14 days by the female; the nestling period is 15-16 days.
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/
- 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
- Sinclair, I and P Ryan. 2003. Birds of Africa South of the Sahara. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0691118154
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Fan-tailed Widowbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 23 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Fan-tailed_Widowbird
