Baya weaver

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Baya weaver
Baya Weaver in Bhigwan August 2025 by Tisha Mukherjee 04.jpg
Male in Bhigwan, Maharashtra, India.
Baya weaver (Ploceus philippinus) female Photograph by Shantanu Kuveskar.jpg
Female P. p. philippinus (Maharashtra, India)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Ploceidae
Genus: Ploceus
Species:
P. philippinus
Binomial name
Ploceus philippinus
Baya Weaver.jpg
     approximate distribution
Synonyms

Loxia philippinaLinnaeus, 1766

The baya weaver (Ploceus philippinus) is a weaverbird found across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Flocks are found in grasslands, cultivated areas, scrub and secondary growth. They are known for their hanging retort shaped nests woven from leaves, usually found on thorny trees or palm fronds, near or hanging over water where predators cannot easily reach. They are widespread and common within their range and are prone to local, seasonal movements in response to rain and food availability.

Contents

Five subspecies are recognized. The nominate race P. p. philippinus is found through much of mainland India while P. p. burmanicus is found eastwards into Southeast Asia. The population in southwest India is darker above and referred to as subspecies P. p. travancoreensis. [2]

Taxonomy

In 1760, French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson described the baya weaver in his Ornithologie based on a specimen he believed, incorrectly, to have been collected in Philippines. He used the French name Le gros-bec des Philippines and the Latin Coccothraustes Philippensis. [3] Brisson's Latin names do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. [4] In 1776, Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, including the baya weaver for which he coined the binomial name Loxia philippina. [4] [5] It was subsequently realised that Brisson was mistaken in believing that his specimen came from the Philippines and the type locality was redesignated as Sri Lanka. [6] This species is now placed in the genus Ploceus that was introduced by the French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1816. [7]

There are five subspecies: [8]

Description

These are sparrow-sized (15 cm [5.9 in]) and in their non-breeding plumage, both males and females resemble female house sparrows. They have a stout conical bill and a short square tail. Non-breeding males and females look very similar: dark brown streaked fulvous buff above, plain (unstreaked) whitish fulvous below, eyebrow long and buff coloured, bill is horn coloured and no mask. Breeding males have a bright yellow crown, dark brown mask, blackish brown bill, upper parts are dark brown streaked with yellow, with a yellow breast and cream buff below. [9]

Behaviour and ecology

Ploceus philippinus eating Pearl millet in Bhigwan, Maharashtra, India. Baya Weaver in Bhigwan August 2025 by Tisha Mukherjee 02.jpg
Ploceus philippinus eating Pearl millet in Bhigwan, Maharashtra, India.

Baya weavers are social and gregarious birds. They forage in flocks for seeds, both on the plants and on the ground. Flocks fly in close formations, often performing complicated manoeuvres. They glean paddy and other grain in harvested fields, and are sometimes considered pests for occasionally damaging ripening crops. [10] They roost in reed-beds bordering waterbodies. They depend on wild grasses such as Guinea grass ( Panicum maximum ) as well as crops like rice for both their food (feeding on seedlings in the germination stage as well as on early stages of grain [11] ) and nesting material. They also feed on insects including butterflies [12] , sometimes taking small frogs, [13] geckos [14] and molluscs, especially to feed their young. [15] Their seasonal movements are governed by food availability. Their calls are a continuous chit-chit-... sometimes ending in a wheezy cheee-eee-ee that is produced by males in a chorus. A lower intensity call is produced in the non-breeding season. [16]

They occasionally indulge in dust bathing. [17]

In captivity, individuals form stable peck orders. [18]

Breeding

Baya weaver (male) building its nest (female inside the nest) Baya weaver building its nest.jpg
Baya weaver (male) building its nest (female inside the nest)

The breeding season is during the monsoons. [2] Breeding condition is initiated by environmental conditions including day length, and comes to an end in late summer. This post-reproductive "photorefractoriness", in which photoperiodic birds cease to respond reproductively to the stimulation of long days, can end spontaneously without having been exposed to short days for four to six months unlike temperate birds. [19] They nest in colonies typically of up to 20–30, close to sources of food, nesting material, and water. The males construct the nests, which are elaborately woven, pendulous, and retort-shaped, with a long vertical tube leading to a side entrance to the central nesting chamber. The birds use their strong beaks to cut, collect, weave, and knot strips of between 20 and 60 cm (7.9 and 23.6 in) from paddy leaves, rough grasses, and palm fronds, making up to 500 trips to complete a nest. Blobs of mud or dung are added to the interior of the nest chamber, which it has been suggested may help to stabilise the nest in strong winds. [20] [21] The nests are often suspended over water [22] from thorny acacia s, palm trees [23] (mainly Phoenix sylvestris [24] ), and sometimes from telephone wires [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] and avenue trees in urban areas. [30] Nests are often located on the eastern side of the tree, where they are believed to provide shelter from the Southwest Monsoon, although late breeders are more likely to build their nests in other orientations. [31] Abandoned nests are sometimes used by mice ( Mus booduga ) [32] and other birds such as munias. [33] [34]

Nests are usually built in colonies but isolated nests are not unknown. [35] Young males may build experimental nests among reeds. [36] In Burma, nests are often built under the eaves of buildings, but this is uncommon in India. [37] The males take about 18 days to construct the complete nest with the intermediate "helmet stage" taking about eight days. [38] The nests are partially built before the males begin to display to passing females by flapping their wings and calling while hanging from their nests. The females inspect the nest and signal their acceptance of a male, whereupon the male completes the nest by adding the entrance tunnel. Males are almost solely in charge of nest building, though females may give finishing touches, particularly to the interior by adding blobs of mud. [39] Location is more important than structure for the female, [40] preferring nests high in trees, over dry land, and on thin branches. [41]

Both males and females are polygamous. Males build many partial nests and begin courting females. The male finishes the nest only after finding a mate. The female lays about two to four white eggs and incubates them for about 14 to 17 days. [42] Males may sometimes assist in feeding the chicks. The chicks leave the nest after about 17 days. [16] After mating, the male typically courts other females at other partially constructed nests. Intraspecific brood parasitism is known, whereby females may lay eggs in the nests of others. [43] Young birds leave the nest in juvenile plumage, which is replaced in their first moult after about four to six months. The young disperse to new locations up to two kilometres away from their origin. [44] Females are capable of breeding after a year while males take half a year longer. There are two moults per year, a prenuptial moult prior to breeding and a second moult after breeding. [45] There is increased lipid metabolism in the crown region of males during the breeding season. Lipids are involved in the transport of the yellow carotenoid pigments that form the crown and are subsequently metabolized. [46]

Despite the protection of thorns and hanging over water, nest predation by crows is not unusual. Broods may also be destroyed by lizards such as Calotes versicolor [42] or rodents such as Vandeleuria oleracea which may take over the nest. [18] Nests are sometimes taken over and used for nesting by munias and Indian silverbills (Euodice malabarica). [47]

In culture

A widespread folk belief in India is that the baya sticks fireflies with mud to the nest walls to light up the interior of the nest at night. [20]

In earlier times, the baya weaver was trained by street performers in India for entertainment. They could pick up objects at the command of their trainers. [48] They were trained to fire toy cannons, string beads, pick up coins and other objects. According to Edward Blyth "the truth is, that the feats performed by trained Bayas are really very wonderful, and must be witnessed to be fully credited. Exhibitors carry them about, we believe, to all parts of the country; and the usual procedure is, when ladies are present, for the bird, on a sign from its master, to take a sweetmeat in its bill, and deposit it between a lady's lips, and repeat this offering to every lady present, the bird following the look and gesture of its master. A miniature cannon is then brought, which the bird loads with coarse grains of powder...." Robert Tytler noted demonstrations where the bird would twirl a thin stick with fires at the ends over its head. [49] These uses have been noted from the time of Akbar.

The baya is like a wild sparrow but yellow. It is extremely intelligent, obedient and docile. It will take small coins from the hand and bring them to its master, and will come to a call from a long distance. Its nests are so ingeniously constructed as to defy the rivalry of clever artificers.

— Āīn (trans. Jarrett), iii. 122. (ca. 1590) quoted in the Hobson Jobson [50]

Local names

Túkúra Sorai (Assamese: টোকোৰা চৰাই); baya, son-chiri (Hindi); bayya chirya (Urdu: بیّا چڑیا ); ବାୟା ଚଢ଼େଇ (Odia); sugaran (Marathi); tempua (Malay); sughari (Gujarati); বাবুই (babui) (Bengali); parsupu pita, gijigadu/gijjigadu గిజిగాడు (Telugu); gijuga ಗಿಜುಗ (Kannada); thukanam kuruvi, ആറ്റക്കുരുവി (Malayalam); [51] thukanan-kuruvi, தூக்கணாங்குருவி (Tamil); wadu-kurulla, tatteh-kurulla, goiyan-kurulla (Sinhala); sa-gaung-gwet, sar-buu-daung စာဗူးတောင်း (Burmese); bijra (Punjabi: ਬਿਜੜਾ ); suyam (Chota Nagpur), bagra(Maithili). [52] संस्कृतम् (सुगृहः/चञ्चूसूचकः) Marathi (सुगरण पक्षी)

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2016). "Ploceus philippinus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016 e.T22719005A94606190. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22719005A94606190.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 Rasmussen, P.C. & Anderton, J.C. (2005). The Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide. Volume 2. Smithsonian Edition and Lynx Edicions. p. 579.
  3. ↑ Brisson, Mathurin Jacques (1760). Ornithologie, ou, Méthode contenant la division des oiseaux en ordres, sections, genres, especes & leurs variétés (in French and Latin). Vol. 3. Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. pp. 232–235, Plate 12 fig 1. The two stars (**) at the start of the section indicates that Brisson based his description on the examination of a specimen.
  4. 1 2 Allen, J.A. (1910). "Collation of Brisson's genera of birds with those of Linnaeus". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 28: 317–335. hdl:2246/678.
  5. ↑ Linnaeus, Carl (1766). Systema naturae: per regna tria natura, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 1 (12th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. pp. 305–306.
  6. ↑ Mayr, Ernst; Greenway, James C. Jr, eds. (1962). Check-list of birds of the world. Vol. 15. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 53.
  7. ↑ Cuvier, Georges (1816). Le Règne animal distribué d'après son organisation: pour servir de base a l'histoire naturelle des animaux et d'introduction a l'anatomie comparée (in French). Vol. 1. Paris: Déterville. p. 383.
  8. ↑ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2018). "Old World sparrows, snowfinches, weavers". World Bird List Version 8.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  9. ↑ Salim, Ali (2002). The Book of Indian Birds (Third ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 64, 283. ISBN   0-19-566523-6.
  10. ↑ Sengupta, S (1974). "The Common Baya (Ploceus philippinus) - a serious pest of agriculture". Current Science. 43 (4): 24–125.
  11. ↑ Ali, Mir Hamid; Singh, T.G. Manmohan; Banu, Aziz; Rao, M. Anand; Janak, A.T. Sainath (1978). "Observations on the food and feeding habits of Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 75: 1198–1204.
  12. ↑ Ambedkar, V. C. (1972). "The Baya [Ploceus philippinus (Linn.)] feeding nestlings with butterflies". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 69 (3): 653–654.
  13. ↑ George, N.J. (1973). "Baya (Ploceus philippinus) feeding on frogs". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 70 (2): 381–382.
  14. ↑ Varu, SN (2002). "Food habits of the Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus (Linn.)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 99 (2): 320.
  15. ↑ Mukherjee, A.K.; Saha, B.C. (1974). "Study on the stomach contents of Common Baya, Ploceus philippinus (Linnaeus)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 71 (2): 308.
  16. 1 2 Ali S, Ripley SD (1999). Handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan. Vol. 10 (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 92–97. ISBN   0-19-562063-1.
  17. ↑ Ganguli, Usha (1968). "Dust bathing by Common Baya (Ploceus philippinus)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 65 (3): 780.
  18. 1 2 Crook, John Hurrell (1960). "Studies on the reproductive behaviour of the Baya Weaver". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 57 (1): 1–44.
  19. ↑ Bisht, M.; Chandola-Saklani, A. (1992). "Short-day experience is not a preprequisite for the termination of photorefractoriness in the reproductive cycle of Baya Weaver, Ploceus philippinus". Journal of Biosciences (Bangalore). 17 (1): 29–34. doi:10.1007/BF02716770. S2CID   33084202.
  20. 1 2 Davis, T. Antony (1973). "Mud and dung plastering in Baya nests". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 70 (1): 57–71.
  21. ↑ Wood, C. A. (1926). "The nest of the Baya weaver bird" (PDF). The Auk. 43 (3): 295–302. doi:10.2307/4075422. JSTOR   4075422.
  22. ↑ Borkar, M.R.; Komarpant, N. (2003). "Observations on the nesting ecology of Baya Weaver bird (Ploceus philippinus, Linn.) in South Goa, with notes on aberrant nest designs Ecology". Environment and Conservation. 9 (2): 217–227.
  23. ↑ Davis, T.A. (1985). "Palms are preferred hosts for Baya Weaverbird colonies". Principes. 29: 115–123.
  24. ↑ Sharma, Satish Kumar (1989). "Host plants used by Baya Weaver Bird Ploceus philippinus (L.) for nesting in Udaipur District, Rajasthan". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 86 (3): 453–454.
  25. ↑ Davis, T. Antony (1974). "Selection of nesting trees and the frequency of nest visits by Baya weaverbird". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 71 (3): 356–366.
  26. ↑ Venkataramani, K (1981). "Nests of Weaver Birds on telegraph wires". Newsletter for Birdwatchers . 21 (9–10): 18.
  27. ↑ Subramanya, S (1982). "Baya nests on telegraph wires". Newsletter for Birdwatchers . 22 (3–4): 6–7.
  28. ↑ Ambedkar, V.C. (1969). "Nests of the Baya, Ploceus philippinus (Linnaeus) on telegraph wires". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 66 (3): 624.
  29. ↑ Kirkpatrick, K.M. (1952). "Baya (Ploceus philippinus Linn.) nests on telegraph wires". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 50 (3): 657.
  30. ↑ Gupta, K.K. (1995). "A note on Baya, Ploceus philippinus nesting on Krishnachuda (Delonix regia) tree". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 92 (1): 124–125.
  31. ↑ Sharma, Satish Kumar (1990). "Orientation of nest colonies by Baya Weaver Birds". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 87 (3): 454–455.
  32. ↑ Akhtar, S Asad; Tiwari, JK (1992). "Brood of the Indian Field Mouse Mus booduga in an abandoned Baya nest". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 89 (2): 245.
  33. ↑ Mishra, Veer Vaibhav (2001). "Munias accept abandoned nest of Baya". Newsletter for Birdwatchers . 41 (1): 13.
  34. ↑ Regupathy, D.; Davis, T.A. (1984). "Mouse, a nest-parasite of Baya Weaver Bird (Ploceus philippinus L.)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 81 (1): 200–202.
  35. ↑ Pandey, Deep Narayan (1991). "Nest site selection by Baya Ploceus philippinus (Linn.)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 88 (3): 458.
  36. ↑ Abdulali, Humayun; Ambedkar, V. C. (1984). "Some notes on the breeding of the Common Baya (Ploceus philippinus)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 81 (3): 701–702.
  37. ↑ Davis, T.A. (1971). "Baya Weaverbird nesting on human habitations". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 68 (1): 246–248.
  38. ↑ Asokan, S.; Mohamed Samsoor; Ali A.; Nagarajan, R. (2008). "Studies on nest construction and nest microclimate of the Baya weaver, Ploceus philippinus (Linn.)". Journal of Environmental Biology. 29 (3): 393–396. PMID   18972698.
  39. ↑ Ali, S. (1931). "The nesting habits of the Baya (Ploceus philippinus)". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 34 (4): 947–964.
  40. ↑ Quader, Suhel (2006). "What makes a good nest? Benefits of nest choice to female Baya weavers (Ploceus philippinus)". The Auk. 123 (2): 475–486. doi: 10.1642/0004-8038(2006)123[475:WMAGNB]2.0.CO;2 . S2CID   85952570.
  41. ↑ Quader, Suhel (2003). "Nesting and Mating Decisions and their Consequences in the Baya Weaverbird Ploceus philippinus" (PDF). Ph.D. Dissertation. University of Florida. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-08-08. Retrieved 2012-09-09.
  42. 1 2 Ali, Salim; Ambedkar, Vijaykumar C (1957). "Further notes on the Baya Weaver Bird Ploceus philippinus Linn". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 54 (3): 491–502.
  43. ↑ Dhindsa, M.S. (1990). "Intraspecific brood parasitism in the Baya Weaverbird (Ploceus philippinus)". Bird Behavior. 8 (2): 111–113. doi:10.3727/015613890791784326.
  44. ↑ Mathew, D.N. (1972). "The ecology of the Baya in Rajampet, Cuddapah Dt., Andhra Pradesh". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 69 (1): 188–191.
  45. ↑ Mathew, D.N. (1977). "Moult in the Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus Linnaeus". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 74 (2): 233–245.
  46. ↑ Narasimhacharya, A. V. R. L. & Kotak, V. C. (1989). "Histochemical observations on the crown skin of male baya: Lipids, lipase and phosphomonoesterases". J. Biosci. 14 (4): 385–390. doi:10.1007/BF02703424. S2CID   45180353.
  47. ↑ Dhindsa, M. S.; Sandhu, P. S. (1988). "Response of the Baya Weaverbird (Ploceus philippinus) to eggs of the White-throated Munia (Lonchura malabarica): relation to possible incipient brood parasitism". Zool. Anz. 220: 216–222.
  48. ↑ Khan, At'har Ali (1799). "On the Baya, or Indian Gross-beak". Asiatic Researches. 2: 109–110.
  49. ↑ Duncan, Peter Martin, ed. (1894). Cassell's Natural History. Volume IV. London: Cassell and Company. p. 103.
  50. ↑ Yule, Henry (1903). William Crooke (ed.). Hobson-Jobson: A glossary of colloquial Anglo-Indian words and phrases, and of kindred terms, etymological, historical, geographical and discursive (New ed.). J. Murray, London.
  51. ↑ "Baya Weaver". Archived from the original on 2017-06-30. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
  52. ↑ Anonymous (1998). "Vernacular Names of the Birds of the Indian Subcontinent" (PDF). Buceros. 3 (1): 53–109.

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