Family Weavers (Ploceidae)
Least Concern
Scaly-fronted Weaver (Sporopipes squamifrons)
Taxonomy
French: Sporopipe squameux German: Schnurrbartweber Spanish: Tejedorcito escamoso
Other common names:
Scaly Weaver,
Scaly-feathered Weaver,
Scaly-feathered Finch
Taxonomy:
Estrelda [sic] squamifrons
A. Smith
, 1836,Kuruman, Northern Cape, South Africa
.Distribution:
SW Angola, Namibia (except for coastal desert), extreme S Zambia, Botswana, W & C Zimbabwe, and NC & S South Africa (including isolated populations in SE Karoo).
Descriptive notes
11 cm; 10–14 g. Very small, pale finch-like weaver with pink bill and black malar stripes. Forehead and crown feathers are black with arrow-shaped white margins; side... read more
Voice
Male song a repetitive 2-note "kreep krop, kreep krop". Female solicits copulation with... read more
Habitat
Dry acacia (Acacia) savanna, scrub and bushes along dry watercourses, and bushy areas near... read more
Food and feeding
Diet primarily small seeds, such as those of grasses Aristida and Schmidtia; also insects, including termites (Isoptera... read more
Breeding
Breeds at any time of year when conditions favourable; peak months Feb–Mar in Zambia, Dec–Apr in Botswana, Jan–Mar in... read more
Movements
No regular pattern of movement detected; locally nomadic during periods of food shortage.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. Common to abundant in many areas. Estimated population in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, on SW Botswana-South Africa border, more than 500,000... read more
Proposed race fuligescens (described from R Modder N of Bloemfontein, in Free State, South Africa) regarded as inseparable from individuals elsewhere in species’ range. Status of form pallidus (described from Caraculo, Namibe Province, in S Angola) uncertain#R; here treated as a synonym. Monotypic.