Swee Waxbill
Coccopygia melanotis
Wooded streams. Yellow belly and vent in both sexes; breast whitish; dark green above; red rump and tail coverts; male has black mask.
LC
Endemic
Description
Common, endemic resident. The ranges of this species and [Yellow-bellied Waxbill] are mutually exclusive. The crimson rump and upper tail coverts and the yellow belly of both sexes are distinctive in the field. Adult male easily identified by black face. Usual call is a soft ‘swee-swee’. An inconspicuous little bird that occurs in flocks, feeding in tall grass near forest fringes and thick bush, and in montane regions usually near wooded streams. When flushed the flocks makes off, calling, and settles briefly in a bush before again flying to feed in the grass.
Quick Facts
Size
9-10 cm - S
Names
A: Suidelike Swie
Z: ubuSukuswane
Ss: Borane-Swaswi
G: Gelbbauchastrild
Bird Family
Small, conical-billed, ground- or grass-feeding seed-eaters, although some will also eat insects. They usually have colourful plumage, although females are usually more drab than males. They generally occur in pairs, or are gregarious when not breeding.
Distribution
Gallery
Behaviour
Breeding
Habitat
An inconspicuous little bird that occurs in 'flocks', feeding in tall grass near 'forest' fringes and thick bush, and in montane regions usually near wooded streams.
