Plocepasser superciliosus
The Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver, *Plocepasser superciliosus*, is a gregarious passerine of the Ploceidae family, commonly found across the savannas and woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. This medium-sized bird, typically measuring 14-15 cm in length and weighing 20-28 grams, is easily identified by its striking rufous or chestnut crown, contrasting sharply with a broad, white supercilium that extends from the bill to behind the eye, often bordered below by a dark eye-stripe. Its upperparts ...
Primarily inhabiting open savannas, dry acacia woodlands, and scrublands, the Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver is typically found at elevations ranging from sea level up to 1,500 meters, favoring areas with scattered trees for nesting and roosting.
The diet consists predominantly of insects, including beetles, grasshoppers, and caterpillars, supplemented by a variety of grass seeds; foraging occurs mainly on the ground.
Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weavers are highly social and diurnal, often observed in stable family groups of 3 to 10 individuals that roost communally, frequently within their elaborately constructed nests or dense thorny bushes. Foraging occurs primarily on the ground, where they hop and glean inse...
The Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver has a broad and continuous distribution across a wide band of sub-Saharan Africa, primarily inhabiting the savanna belt from the Atlantic coast eastwards. Its breeding range extends from Senegal and The Gambia in the west, through Guinea, Sierra Leone, Ivory Co...
Least Concern
- The Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver is a cooperative breeder, meaning multiple birds, not just the parents, help raise the young within a family group. - Their nests are large, untidy, spherical structures often with multiple entrances, which are frequently built close together in a single thor...