Chirping with Kloof Conservancy – Fan-tailed Widowbird

THE male Fan-tailed Widowbird undergoes a stunning transformation from rather boring brown colours to striking black-and-red plumage during the breeding season!

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Description

This is a smallish, chunky bird at 15cm in length and with a mass of about 26g. They are about the size of most weaver birds. During the non-breeding period, the males and females are very similar in appearance with streaky brown and orange-brown epaulettes on the wings. During the breeding season, the male transforms into a bird with jet-black feathers, a metallic-blue beak and striking scarlet epaulettes. It is quite similar to the Long-tailed Widowbird but distinguished from it by the much shorter tail of the Fan-tailed.

Distribution

This species is found across most of sub-Saharan Africa, and in South Africa, it is found on the wetter eastern parts from Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) northwards to the southern parts of the Kruger National Park.

Habitat

The Fan-tailed Widowbird can be found mainly in wet grasslands, marshes and also in farmed land such as canefields where there is good source of grass seeds.

Feeding

The main diet of the Fan-tailed Widowbird consists of a variety of grass seeds, and it will often be spotted feeding on long grass stems or picking fallen seeds on the ground. It will also feed opportunistically on insects such as caterpillars and termites.

Breeding

This species is polygymous, and the male will mate with multiple females during the breeding season. The males are very territorial and will defend their nesting area from intruders. The breeding period is from October to March, and females will raise two to three chicks. All the care and feeding is done by the female.

Predators and threats

This species is listed as ‘least concern’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and the biggest threat is from habitat destruction.

Local information

It is not a very common bird in the Highway area mainly because most of our grasslands have been destroyed for human habitation. They can be spotted on grasslands such as those of the Msinsi Grassland Project in Kloof.

Interesting facts

Plumage colour plays an important part in the male Fan-tailed Widowbird’s ability to defend its territory. It is believed that males with very bright red and large epaulettes are more likely to dominate their chosen territory.

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