Bird Guide

Black Bishop vs Yellow-mantled Widowbird

Black Bishop (Euplectes gierowii)

Black Bishop

Euplectes gierowii

Small28 gGrassland

At 14 to 16 cm (5.5–6.3 in), the black bishop is large for its genus. The breeding male is black on the wings, tail, chest, cheeks and forehead. The neck, back of the head and breast band) are orange or orange-red. The under tail-coverts are pale buff with black streaks, and the upper back is yellow or orange-yellow in subspecies ansorgei, and orange in friederichseni. The throat is scarlet in the nominate subspecies and black in ansorgei. The subspecies friederichseni has the undertail coverts isabelline. The upper back is golden yellow and the rump is brown.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K · CC BY 2.0
Yellow-mantled Widowbird (Euplectes macroura)

Yellow-mantled Widowbird

Euplectes macroura

Small22 gGrassland

Males are larger than females and acquire longer tails and striking black and golden yellow plumages in the breeding season. The mantle colour is either golden yellow, or in the case of the northeastern race, E. m. macrocercus, black. The yellow shoulders persist in all male plumages, whether breeding or non-breeding.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) 116916927065934112165, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by 116916927065934112165 · cc-by

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Black Bishop and Yellow-mantled Widowbird.