African Silverbill
Euodice cantans
The African Silverbill (Euodice cantans) is a uncommon munias, parrotfinches, waxbills, and alli found in 28 countries, weighing about 12 g. The African silverbill is a small passerine bird formerly considered conspecific with the Asian species Indian silverbill,.
About the African Silverbill
The African silverbill is a small passerine bird formerly considered conspecific with the Asian species Indian silverbill,. This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in dry savanna habitat, south of the Sahara Desert. This species has also been introduced to other countries such as Portugal, Qatar and United States.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The African silverbill is approximately 10 cm (3.9 in) in length with a long black pointed tail. The adult has a stubby silver-blue bill, finely vermiculated light-brown upper parts, whitish underparts, black rump and black wings. The sexes are similar, but immatures lack the vermiculations. This species has a tseep call and a trilling song. The contact call of the male is a single tseep while the female is a double noted tsiptsip. Birds in flight keep up a constant tseep tseep tseep. The subspecies E. c. orientalis is darker on the face and upperparts than the other subspecies.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Sierra Leone, Spain, Martinique.
When to see it
The African Silverbill can be seen all year round, with peak activity in January. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify an African Silverbill?
- The African silverbill is approximately 10 cm (3.9 in) in length with a long black pointed tail. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is an African Silverbill?
- The African Silverbill is a tiny sized bird weighing about 12 g.
- Where can you see an African Silverbill?
- The African Silverbill occurs in 28 countries, including the United States, Senegal, Oman, Nigeria and Kenya.
- What birds look similar to an African Silverbill?
- The African Silverbill is most easily confused with the Indian Silverbill.
- Is the African Silverbill endangered?
- The African Silverbill is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the African Silverbill for real
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