How big is a Fan-tailed Widowbird?

The Fan-tailed Widowbird is a small sized bird weighing about 25 g.

Where can you see a Fan-tailed Widowbird?

The Fan-tailed Widowbird occurs in 18 countries, including South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda.

What birds look similar to a Fan-tailed Widowbird?

The Fan-tailed Widowbird is most easily confused with the Red-collared Widowbird, the White-winged Widowbird and the Yellow-crowned Bishop.

Is the Fan-tailed Widowbird endangered?

The Fan-tailed Widowbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Fan-tailed Widowbird

Euplectes axillaris

Weavers and Allies · Passeriformes · Uncommon

The Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris) is a uncommon weaver found in 18 countries, weighing about 25 g. The fan-tailed widowbird, also known as the red-shouldered widowbird, is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae, which is native to grassy and swampy areas of the tropical and subtropical Afrotropics.

Least ConcernUncommonEats seedsgrasslanddome nest25 g

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 1 — Photo: gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K · CC BY 2.0

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 2 — Photo: Andrew Smith · Public domain

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 3 — Photo: Luigi Balugani · CC0

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 4 — Photo: Stig Nygaard · CC BY 2.0

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 5 — Photo: Neil Strickland · CC BY 2.0

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 6 — Photo: derivative work: JerryFriedman (talk) Euplectes_axillaris1.jpg: Stig Nygaard · CC BY 2.0

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 7 — Photo: Mohanr53 at English Wikipedia · Public domain

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 8 — Photo: Mohanr53 at English Wikipedia · Public domain

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 9 — Photo: (c) avocat, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

Fan-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes axillaris), photo 10 — Photo: (c) avocat, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

About the Fan-tailed Widowbird

The fan-tailed widowbird, also known as the red-shouldered widowbird, is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae, which is native to grassy and swampy areas of the tropical and subtropical Afrotropics.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where it lives

South Africa Uganda Tanzania Kenya Rwanda Eswatini Mozambique Botswana Namibia Zambia Congo - Brazzaville Ethiopia Congo - Kinshasa Malawi Angola Cameroon Lesotho Zimbabwe

When to see it

Best months: January, February, March, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December, with peak activity in January. It is a resident species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

What does a Fan-tailed Widowbird look like?: The fan-tailed widowbird, also known as the red-shouldered widowbird, is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae, which is native to grassy and swampy areas of the tropical and subtropical Afrotropics.
How big is a Fan-tailed Widowbird?: The Fan-tailed Widowbird is a small sized bird weighing about 25 g.
Where can you see a Fan-tailed Widowbird?: The Fan-tailed Widowbird occurs in 18 countries, including South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda.
What birds look similar to a Fan-tailed Widowbird?: The Fan-tailed Widowbird is most easily confused with the Red-collared Widowbird, the White-winged Widowbird and the Yellow-crowned Bishop.
Is the Fan-tailed Widowbird endangered?: The Fan-tailed Widowbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the Fan-tailed Widowbird for real

BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.

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