Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver figure from Cretzschmar 1827
Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver figure from Reichenbach 1863
Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver distribution, type locality circled
Introduction
The Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver was formally described by Philipp Jakob Cretzschmar, a German physician who founded the Senckenberg Natural History Museum in Frankfurt.
Wilhelm Peter Eduard Simon Ruppell, a German naturalist and explorer. Ruppell made two extended expeditions to northern and eastern Africa, the first from 1822-1827 (when he collected the Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver), and the second between 1830 and 1833. Ruppell probably collected the specimens near El Obeid, capital of Kordofan (Steinbacher 1949), Sudan. Ruppell and his colleague Cretzschmar, described many new species based on Ruppell's collections.
The first illustration of a Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver is a colour painting by Cretzschmar 1827. The next published illustration is by Reichenbach 1863, again in colour.
Scientific citation
Ploceus superciliosus Cretzschmar 1827 In Ruppell's Atlas, Vogel, p.24, pl. 15 Kordofan, Sudan.
Meaning of names
superciliosus Latin: superciliosus, eyebrowed.
First English name
Chestnut-crowned Sand-Finch (Swainson 1837).
Alternate names
Chestnut-crowned Sand-Finch, The eyebrowed Philagrus, Cameroon Sparrow-Weaver.
Collector
Ruppell.
Date collected
1825 (Steinbacher 1949).
Locality collected
Probably El Obeid region, capital of Kordofan (Steinbacher 1949), Sudan.
Type specimens
Two types are in Senckenberg but others are possible (Steinheimer 2005).
Weaver Watch
