Black-necked Weaver
Encyclopedia
The Black-necked Weaver (Ploceus nigricollis) is a resident breeding bird
species in much of tropical Africa
from Senegal
and northern Angola
, South Sudan
and Tanzania
.
. It builds a large coarsely woven nest
made of grass and creepers with a 15 cm downward facing entrance tunnel hanging from the globular egg
chamber. The nest is suspended from a branch in a tree and 2-3 eggs are laid. It nests in pairs but forms small flocks when not breeding.
. The adult male of the northern race has olive upperparts and wings, and yellow underparts and head. It has a black eyemask and bib, and a pale yellow iris. The non-breeding male has a yellow head with an olive crown, grey upperparts and whitish. The wings remain yellow and black.
The adult female also has olive upperparts and wings, and yellow underparts and head. It has a black eyemask but no bib.
The southern race found from Nigeria
eastwards has a quite different appearance, with almost black upperparts and tail.
The Black-necked Weaver feeds on insects and vegetable matter. The calls
of this bird include a wheezing dew-dew-twee .
:
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
species in much of tropical Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
from Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
and northern Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
, South Sudan
South Sudan
South Sudan , officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country located in the Sahel region of northeastern Africa. It is also part of the North Africa UN sub-region. Its current capital is Juba, which is also its largest city; the capital city is planned to be moved to the more...
and Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
.
Distribution and biology
This weaver occurs in forests, especially in wet habitatsHabitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
. It builds a large coarsely woven nest
Bird nest
A bird nest is the spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young. Although the term popularly refers to a specific structure made by the bird itself—such as the grassy cup nest of the American Robin or Eurasian Blackbird, or the elaborately woven hanging nest of the...
made of grass and creepers with a 15 cm downward facing entrance tunnel hanging from the globular egg
Bird egg
Bird eggs are laid by females and incubated for a time that varies according to the species; a single young hatches from each egg. Average clutch sizes range from one to about 17...
chamber. The nest is suspended from a branch in a tree and 2-3 eggs are laid. It nests in pairs but forms small flocks when not breeding.
Description
The Black-necked Weaver is a stocky 16 cm bird with a strong conical billBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
. The adult male of the northern race has olive upperparts and wings, and yellow underparts and head. It has a black eyemask and bib, and a pale yellow iris. The non-breeding male has a yellow head with an olive crown, grey upperparts and whitish. The wings remain yellow and black.
The adult female also has olive upperparts and wings, and yellow underparts and head. It has a black eyemask but no bib.
The southern race found from Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
eastwards has a quite different appearance, with almost black upperparts and tail.
The Black-necked Weaver feeds on insects and vegetable matter. The calls
Bird song
Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs are distinguished by function from calls.-Definition:The distinction between songs and calls is based upon...
of this bird include a wheezing dew-dew-twee .
Subspecies
There are four known subspeciesSubspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
:
- Ploceus nigricollis nigricollis
- Ploceus nigricollis brachypterus
- Ploceus nigricollis melanoxanthus
- Ploceus nigricollis po