White-winged Widowbird
Euplectes albonotatus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyPloceidae (Weavers and Allies)
- GenusEuplectes (Bishops and Widowbirds)
- SpeciesEuplectes albonotatus (White-winged Widowbird)
About the White-winged Widowbird
The white-winged widowbird (Euplectes albonotatus) is a species of passerine bird in the family Ploceidae native to Africa south of the Sahara. It is highly sexually dimorphic in its breeding season, during which the male's yellow plumage turns dark and he gains more white feathers, contrasting with the female's predominantly pale coloration. Three subspecies are recognised.
The white-winged widowbird was first described by the American ornithologist John Cassin in 1848. Hybrids with "red bishops", probably northern red bishop (E. franciscanus), have been reported in captivity. Non-captive interbreeding of race eques with nominate appears to occur in southern Tanzania, but they appear to stay segregated in Burundi and western Tanzania. A proposal has been made for race sassii, which is found along the northwestern shore of Lake Tanganyika. Alternate common names include: white-fronted/white-shouldered widowbird, white-winged/white-shouldered whydah, long-tailed black whydah.
Three subspecies of the white-winged widowbird are now recognized. E. a. albonotatus (Cassin, 1848), inhabits Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of White-winged Widowbird in Lower Zambezi National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Lower Zambezi National Park
Red Bishop
Euplectes orix
Yellow-rumped Widowbird
Euplectes capensis
Red-billed Quelea
Quelea quelea
Red-headed Weaver
Anaplectes rubriceps
Lesser Masked-Weaver
Ploceus intermedius
Spectacled Weaver
Ploceus ocularis
Southern Masked Weaver
Ploceus velatus
Village Weaver
Ploceus cucullatus
Holub's Golden-Weaver
Ploceus xanthops
Red-headed Quelea
Quelea erythrops
Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver
Bubalornis niger
Meves's Glossy-starling
Lamprotornis mevesii
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.