Bird Guide

Baya Weaver vs Village Weaver

Baya Weaver (Ploceus philippinus)

Baya Weaver

Ploceus philippinus

Small28 gShrubland

These are sparrow-sized (15 cm ) and in their non-breeding plumage, both males and females resemble female house sparrows. They have a stout conical bill and a short square tail. Non-breeding males and females look very similar: dark brown streaked fulvous buff above, plain (unstreaked) whitish fulvous below, eyebrow long and buff coloured, bill is horn coloured and no mask. Breeding males have a bright yellow crown, dark brown mask, blackish brown bill, upper parts are dark brown streaked with yellow, with a yellow breast and cream buff below.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Griha Hasanov, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY
Village Weaver (Ploceus cucullatus)

Village Weaver

Ploceus cucullatus

Small36 gWoodland

The village weaver is a stocky, 15–17 cm (5.9–6.7 in) bird with a strong conical bill and dark reddish eyes. In the northern part of its range, the breeding male has a black head edged by chestnut (typically most distinct on the nape and chest). Towards the southern part of its range, the amount of black and chestnut diminish, and the breeding males of the southernmost subspecies only have a black face and throat, while the nape and crown are yellow. In all subspecies, the breeding male has a black bill, black and yellow upperparts and wings, and yellow underparts.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Anne Ndung'u · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Parchaco · CC0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Baya Weaver and Village Weaver.