Alternative names: Hartlaub's Marsh Widowbird; Marsh Whydah
- Euplectes hartlaubi
Identification
18cm, male in breeding plumage 36 cm. A large widowbird with a very long tail.
Breeding Male
- Almost wholly black plumage
- Long black tail
- Bright orange median and lesser wing-coverts forming a large shoulder patch
- Narrow buff margins on greater wing-coverts
- Greyish-blue bill
- Blackish legs
Non-breeding Male
- Tail replaced by short brown rectrices
- Black remiges and coloured shoulder patch remain
- Dark brown crown and upperparts with buff feather margins
- Tawny-white underparts with some narrow streaking on breast feathers
- Short dark moustachial streaks
- Dark brown bill
- Brown legs
Female
- Similar to non-breeding male
- Wings with brown remiges and coverts and without shoulder patch
- More sandy-buff underparts, less heavily streaked
- Pale brown bill
Juveniles resemble females. Humeralis differs in size and breeding males have a much shorter tail.
Distribution
Patchily distributed in central and eastern Africa.
A poorly known species, local and uncommon. Habitat and populations fragmented.
Taxonomy
Two subspecies recognized:
- E. h. humeralis in the highlands of Nigeria to Cameroon, DRC, Uganda and western Kenya
- E. h. hartlaubi from Angola to southern DRC and Zambia
Formerly considered conspecific with Montane Widowbird, however new studies show that the two species are not even sister-taxa.
Habitat
Occurs in swampy grassland and adjacent cultivated areas.
Generally at 1100 to 1800m in East Africa.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds on grass seeds, insects and small fruit.
Forages mostly in small groups, often together with other widowbirds.
Breeding
Breeding season differs through range. A polygynous species. The nest is spherical with a side entrance and made of fine grass stems. It's placed low in wet areas with dense grass. Lays 1 to 3 eggs.
Movements
Presumably a resident species.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2010. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 15: Weavers to New World Warblers. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553682
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Marsh Widowbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Marsh_Widowbird
