Village Indigobird
Vidua chalybeata
The Village Indigobird (Vidua chalybeata) is a uncommon whydahs and indigobird found in 40 countries, weighing about 13 g. The village indigobird, also known as the steelblue widowfinch or the Combassou finch, is a small songbird belonging to the family Viduidae.
About the Village Indigobird
The village indigobird, also known as the steelblue widowfinch or the Combassou finch, is a small songbird belonging to the family Viduidae. It is distinguishable from other indigobird species by bill and leg colours, the colour tinge of the male's breeding plumage, song, and to lesser extent, the nestling's plumage and mouth pattern. The bill colour can be red or white depending on the population, and there is some regional variation in the colour tone of the male's plumage.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The village indigobird is 11–12 cm in length. The adult male is entirely greenish-black or bluish-black except for his orange-red legs and conical white bill. The female resembles a female house sparrow, with streaked brown upperparts, buff underparts, a whitish supercilium and a yellowish bill, although she also has red legs. Immature birds are like the female but plainer and without a supercilium. Many of the indigobirds are very similar in appearance, with the males difficult to separate in the field, and the young and females near impossible.
What the Village Indigobird sounds like
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in United States.
When to see it
The Village Indigobird 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 a Village Indigobird?
- The village indigobird is 11–12 cm in length. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Village Indigobird?
- The Village Indigobird is a tiny sized bird weighing about 13 g.
- Where can you see a Village Indigobird?
- The Village Indigobird occurs in 40 countries, including South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
- What does a Village Indigobird sound like?
- You can listen to a field recording of the Village Indigobird on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Village Indigobird?
- The Village Indigobird is most easily confused with the Long-tailed Paradise Whydah, the Shaft-tailed Whydah and the Dusky Indigobird.
- Is the Village Indigobird endangered?
- The Village Indigobird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Village Indigobird 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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