Red-billed Firefinch
Lagonosticta senegala
The combination of a red bill, yellow-green eye-ring, and brown (not black) undertail are characteristic of this firefinch. The male has a pink face, crown, and underparts, while the female is mostly brown with a small pink patch between the eye and bill and a pink upper tail. Pairs and small flocks are resident in a variety of grassy savanna habitats and in cultivation, where they feed on the ground for seeds and fly into trees when disturbed. The species may join mixed-species flocks and often drinks or bathes. It gives a melodic “swee-tee-eeer” song and a spitting, tinny “prrrrrt” call. The Bar-breasted Firefinch is very similar to the Red-billed Firefinch, but has a brown (not reddish) crown; the Brown Firefinch has a brown rump.
Identification
The red-billed firefinch is 10 cm (3.9 in) in length. The adult male has entirely scarlet plumage apart from brown wings. The bill is pink, and there is a yellow eye-ring. Females have uniformly brown upperparts and buff underparts. There is a small red patch in front of both eyes, with the bill also being pink.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the red-billed firefinch in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Senegal. He used the French name Le Sénégali rouge and the Latin name Senegalus Ruber. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the red-billed firefinch. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Fringilla senegala and cited Brisson's work. The species is now placed in the genus Lagonosticta that was introduced by the German ornithologists Jean Cabanis in 1851.<p>There are six subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Lagonosticta senegala
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Estrildidae
- Genus
- Lagonosticta
Range and habitat
This widespread and abundant species is often found around human habitation, often with other species such as the red-cheeked cordon-bleu. Its soft queet-queet call is a familiar African sound. The song is a rising chick-pea-pea-pea.<p>The red-billed firefinch is a small gregarious bird which feeds mainly on grain and other seeds. It frequents open grassland and cultivation. The nest is a large domed grass structure with a side entrance, built low in a bush, wall or thatch into which three to six white eggs are laid. The nest of this species is parasitised by the village indigobird.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Eastern Crested Guineafowl
Guttera pucherani
A large-bodied, small-headed, black gamebird perfectly lined with rows of hundreds of bluish-white spots. It has a ridiculous-looking plumed “toupee” above the naked face, which features a distinctive ivory-colored bill and a blood-red eye. The bare facial skin is red on the face and blue on the neck. Prefers forest and thickets, where it forages on the ground for berries, seeds, and other plant matter. The similar Helmeted Guineafowl differs by its lack of a feathered crest, having a bone-like casque on top of the head instead. The alarm call is a series of rattling, agitated notes that speed up and slow down; similar to the call of Helmeted Guineafowl, but with a tinnier quality.
Hartlaub's Spurfowl
Pternistis hartlaubi
Small francolin with an unusually long and downcurved bill. The male and female are very different: the male has a white eye-stripe and heavy streaking below, while the female has plain rufous underparts. Found on and around rock outcrops in semi-desert brushland and arid savanna. Usually in pairs and small groups. Main call is a very loud, repeated, up-and-down “cheetle-chiddle” duet. Distinguished from other francolins in its range by lack of red bill and/or facial skin.
Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet
Camptostoma obsoletum
Small flycatcher, common and widespread from Costa Rica to Argentina. Plumage is nondescript (and quite variable across range), but note bushy crest, active behavior, short bill, and plain face. Singles, pairs, or small groups can be found in a variety of wooded habitats, from dry scrub to the edge of mature rainforest, but often prefers second growth. Voice varies across range, with different populations probably representing separate species. Northern birds give plaintive whistled “teew, teew, teew” notes. Southern birds can give much different descending sputtering trill in addition to plaintive whistles.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.