African silverbill

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African silverbill
African Silverbill - Kenya NH8O5709 (22595043249), crop.jpg
In Kenya
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Estrildidae
Genus: Euodice
Species:
E. cantans
Binomial name
Euodice cantans
(Gmelin, JF, 1789)
Subspecies [2]
  • Euodice cantans cantans
  • Euodice cantans orientalis
African Silverbill Distribution.jpg
Distribution of the African silverbill
Synonyms [2]
  • Loxia cantans protonym, original spelling
  • Euodice cantans cantans recombination, emendation
  • Lonchura cantans recombination, emendation
  • Lonchura cantans cantans recombination, emendation
  • Lonchura malabarica cantans recombination, emendation

The African silverbill (Euodice cantans) is a small passerine bird formerly considered conspecific with the Asian species Indian silverbill, (Euodice malabarica). This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in dry savanna habitat, south of the Sahara Desert. This species has also been introduced to other countries such as Portugal, Qatar and United States.

Contents

Taxonomy

The African silverbill was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin under the binomial name Loxia cantans. [3] The specific epithet is from Latin and means "singing". [4] Gmemlin specified the locality as Africa but this was restricted to Dakar in Senegal by William Lutley Sclater and Cyril Mackworth-Praed in 1918. [5] [6] It is now placed with the Indian silverbill in the genus Euodice that was introduced in 1862 by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach. [7] [8]

In early literature, the African silverbill and the Indian silverbill (E. malabarica) were treated as conspecific. In 1943, Jean Théodore Delacour united both species in his revision of the Estrildinae. [9] However, in 1964, Colin Harrison studied the two in a strictly comparative manner and concluded that they were two separate species. He discovered that although the call notes were similar, the songs are distinctly different in form, but sharing a common pattern. They are sympatric in the south of the Arabian Peninsula and there is no record of natural hybridization. From Harrison's personal observation of birds in captivity, each of the two forms evinced a preference for its own kind. [10] A molecular phylogenetic study of the Estrildidae published in 2020 found that the African and Indian silverbills were sister species that had diverged around one million years ago. The two species formed a clade that was basal to members of the genus Lonchura . [11]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognised: [8]

Description

The African silverbill is approximately 10 cm (3.9 in) in length with a long black pointed tail. The adult has a stubby silver-blue bill, finely vermiculated light-brown upper parts, whitish underparts, black rump and black wings. The sexes are similar, but immatures lack the vermiculations. This species has a tseep call and a trilling song. The contact call of the male is a single tseep while the female is a double noted tsiptsip. Birds in flight keep up a constant tseep tseep tseep.

The subspecies E. c. orientalis is darker on the face and upperparts than the other subspecies.

Distribution and habitat

The species is widespread in savanna country, arid landscape with thorn bush, and grasslands with acacias or dry grassland. It may also be found in cultivated areas and dry grassland. It is by nature a bird of dry country. It is primarily a lowland species but can be found up to 2,000 m (6,600 ft) altitude.

Behaviour

The African silverbill is tame and sociable, often found perching in trees in dense flocks, touching one another. However, it is a particularly inactive bird, sitting huddled together for a long period of time. It stays in flocks all year round and usually breeds in loose colony.

Feeding

The African silverbill feeds mostly on grass seeds, picked from the ground but also taken from the growing plants if available. It will cling to grass stems to take seeds from the inflorescences. It seems that it feeds mainly on vegetable matter and rearing its young on seed as well. However, it has been recorded to take aphids from water mint (Meinertzhagen 1954).

Courtship

The male displays by grasping a stem of grass at one end, and hops or files to near the female. At once he sleeks down his feathers, stands upright with tail straight down, and jerks his head upwards a few times. He then leans forward, twists his tail towards the female and fluffs his flank and belly feathers. At this stage he usually drops the straw and begins to sing and dance. The flank and ventral feathers are not always fluffed out, and the intensity of the display probably depends on the relationship of the two birds. If the female seems receptive the male will attempt copulation. However, most displays come to an end before this final phase is reached. Successful mating is usually followed by a little bill fencing and mutual preening (Baptista and Horblit 1990).

Breeding

The nest of the African silverbill is usually built in the form of a roundish bundle of grasses. It is lined with soft fibres and sometimes feathers, and may be placed in a thick bush or hedge or amongst the creepers on a house. The male is recorded in the wild as collecting all the nesting material (Meinertzhagen 1954), while the female only shares in construction.

The clutch varies from three to six oval, smooth white eggs. The female incubates during the day, and though the male may relieve her when she leaves the nest to feed. It has been suggested that the male does not actually brood (Soderberg 1956). They are both at nest at night. The incubation period is about eleven to thirteen days average, and the young fledging in about twenty-one days and becoming independent within a month of fledging.

Newly hatched young are dark and have waxy-looking yellow gape swellings. The plate has a single heavy black circle inside the white mouth flange, which embraces the upper and lower parts of the gape.

Threats

The African silverbill is currently trapped for the cage bird trade. However, its numbers and its considerable range mean that this is unlikely to have any impact on the species' survival.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Estrildidae</span> Family of birds

Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. Despite the word "finch" being included in the common names of some species, they are not closely related to birds with this name in other families, such as the Fringillidae, Emberizidae or Passerellidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bronze mannikin</span> Species of bird

The bronze mannikin or bronze munia is a small passerine bird of the Afrotropics. This very social estrildid finch is an uncommon to locally abundant bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara Desert, where it is resident, nomadic or irruptive in mesic savanna or forest margin habitats. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 8,100,000 km2. It is the smallest and most widespread of four munia species on the African mainland, the other being black-and-white, red-backed and magpie mannikin. It co-occurs with the Madagascar mannikin on the Comoro Islands, and was introduced to Puerto Rico. Especially in the West Africa, it is considered a pest in grain and rice fields. It is locally trapped for the pet bird trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian silverbill</span> Species of bird

The Indian silverbill or white-throated munia is a small passerine bird found in the Indian Subcontinent and adjoining regions that was formerly considered to include the closely related African silverbill. This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in the drier regions of the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. It has also been introduced into many other parts of the world and has become established in some areas. They forage in small flocks in grassland and scrub habitats.

<i>Lonchura</i> Genus of birds

Lonchura is a genus of the estrildid finch family, and includes munias and mannikins. They are seed-eating birds that are found in South Asia from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka east to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. The name mannikin is from Middle Dutch mannekijn 'little man', and also the source of the common name of the family Pipridae, manakin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double-barred finch</span> Species of bird

The double-barred finch is an estrildid finch found in dry savannah, tropical (lowland) dry grassland and shrubland habitats in northern and eastern Australia. It is sometimes referred to as Bicheno's finch or as the owl finch, the latter of which owing to the dark ring of feathers around the face. It is the only species placed in the genus Stizoptera .

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red avadavat</span> Species of bird

The red avadavat, red munia or strawberry finch, is a sparrow-sized bird of the family Estrildidae. It is found in the open fields and grasslands of tropical Asia and is popular as a cage bird due to the colourful plumage of the males in their breeding season. It breeds in the Indian Subcontinent in the monsoon season. The species name of amandava and the common name of avadavat are derived from the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat, India, from where these birds were exported into the pet trade in former times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common waxbill</span> Species of bird

The common waxbill, also known as the St Helena waxbill, is a small passerine bird belonging to the estrildid finch family. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa but has been introduced to many other regions of the world and now has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km2. It is popular and easy to keep in captivity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plum-headed finch</span> Species of bird

The plum-headed finch also known as cherry finch is a common species of estrildid finch found in Australia. It is the only species placed in the genus Aidemosyne. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 100,000 – 1,000,000 km2.

<i>Nesocharis</i> Genus of birds

Nesocharis is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae. They are found in Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey-headed silverbill</span> Species of bird

The grey-headed silverbill, also known as pearl-headed mannikin, is a species of estrildid finch found in eastern Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Tanzania. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 400,000 km2. It was formerly usually placed in the monotypic genus Odontospiza as Odontospiza caniceps and sometimes placed in the genus Lonchura.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dusky munia</span> Species of bird

The dusky munia is a species of estrildid finch which is endemic to Borneo. It is also commonly referred to as the Dusky mannikin and the Bornean munia. It is in the family of perching birds (Passeriformes) and is in the genus Lonchura. It is a monotypic species, and there are no subspecies in the genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tricoloured munia</span> Species of bird

The tricoloured munia is an estrildid finch, native to Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and southern China. The species has also been introduced to the Caribbean, in Trinidad, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Venezuela. This species, like the chestnut munia has been known as the black-headed munia. Immature birds have pale brown upperparts, lack the dark head found in adults, and have uniform buff underparts that can be confused with immatures of other munias such as the scaly-breasted munia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firefinch</span> Genus of birds

The firefinches form a genus, Lagonosticta, of small seed-eating African birds in the family Estrildidae.

<i>Pytilia</i> Genus of birds

Pytilia is a genus of small brightly coloured seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae. They are distributed across Africa.

<i>Hypargos</i> (bird) Genus of birds

Hypargos is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae that are found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

<i>Euodice</i> Genus of birds

Euodice is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae. These species are from the dry zones of Africa and India and are commonly referred to as silverbills. They were formerly included in the genus Lonchura.

<i>Amandava</i> Genus of birds

Amandava is a genus of the estrildid finches. These birds are found in dense grass or scrub in Africa and South Asia. They are gregarious seed-eaters with short, red bills. In earlier literature, amadavat and amidavad have been used. The name amandava, along with amadavat and amidavad are all corruptions of Ahmedabad, a city in Gujarat, India from where the first few specimens of the red munia Amandava amandava were obtained.

<i>Coccopygia</i> Genus of birds

Coccopygia, is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae. They are distributed across central and southern Africa.

<i>Brunhilda</i> (bird) Genus of birds

Brunhilda is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the waxbill family Estrildidae. The species are found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Mayrimunia is a genus of small seed-eating birds in the family Estrildidae that are endemic to New Guinea.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2018). "Euodice cantans". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22719761A131997328. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22719761A131997328.en . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Euodice cantans (African Silverbill) - Avibase". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  3. Gmelin, Johann Friedrich (1789). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae : secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 2 (13th ed.). Lipsiae [Leipzig]: Georg. Emanuel. Beer. p. 859. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  4. Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 89. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  5. Sclater, William Lutley; Mackworth-Praed, Cyril (1918). "List of birds of the Anglo-Indian Sudan, based on the collections of Mr. A.L. Butler, Mr. A. Chapman and Capt. H. Lynes, R.N., and Major Cuthbert Christy, R.A.M.C. (T.F.). Part I. Corvidae – Fringillidae". Ibis. 10th series. 6: 416–476 [440. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919X.1918.tb00791.x. Archived from the original on 28 July 2024. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  6. Paynter, Raymond A. Jr, ed. (1968). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 14. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 440. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  7. Reichenbach, Ludwig (1862). Die Singvögel als Fortsetzung de vollständigsten Naturgeschichte und zugleich als Central-Atlas für zoologische Gärten und für Thierfreunde. Ein durch zahlreiche illuminirte Abbildungen illustrirtes Handbuch zur richtigten Bestimmung und Pflege der Thiere aller Classen (in German). Dresden and Leipzig: Expedition Vollständigsten Naturgeschichte. p. 46. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  8. 1 2 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Waxbills, parrotfinches, munias, whydahs, Olive Warbler, accentors, pipits". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Archived from the original on 15 September 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  9. Delacour, Jean (1943). "A revision of the subfamily Estrildinae of the family Ploceidae". Zoologica. 28 (11): 69–86. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  10. Harrison, C.J.O. (1964). "The taxonomic status of the African silverbill". Ibis. 106 (4): 462–468. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919X.1964.tb03727.x.
  11. Olsson, Urban; Alström, Per (2020). "A comprehensive phylogeny and taxonomic evaluation of the waxbills (Aves: Estrildidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 146: 106757. Bibcode:2020MolPE.14606757O. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106757 . PMID   32028027.