Ploceus olivaceiceps
The Olive-headed Weaver (Ploceus olivaceiceps) is a small, striking passerine belonging to the family Ploceidae, renowned for its intricate nest-building. Males are particularly distinctive, sporting an iridescent olive-green head that transitions smoothly into olive-green upperparts, contrasting sharply with their bright golden-yellow underparts. Females are generally duller, exhibiting more greenish-yellow overall and lacking the vivid olive cap, though they share the typical weaver's stout...
Found primarily in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist savanna, and especially miombo woodlands, often at forest edges or clearings. It typically occurs at low to moderate elevations.
Primarily insectivorous, consuming a variety of insects such as caterpillars, beetles, and ants, along with spiders. They also supplement their diet with seeds and occasional fruit.
Olive-headed Weavers are primarily diurnal, actively foraging throughout the day and roosting solitarily or in small groups in dense foliage at night. Their foraging strategy involves gleaning insects and spiders from leaves and branches, often joining mixed-species feeding flocks, though they ca...
The Olive-headed Weaver exhibits a disjunct distribution across Eastern and Southern Africa, primarily associated with specific woodland and forest types. In East Africa, populations are found in southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique, extending into parts of Malawi. Further south, its range i...
Least Concern
- The Olive-headed Weaver is one of the few weaver species that nests solitarily, distinguishing it from the highly colonial nesting habits of many of its relatives. - Its intricate, retort-shaped nest, suspended from a branch with a long entrance tube, is a marvel of avian architecture, woven me...