Weaver news

Third Clarke's Weaver breeding colony

2019-01-27 (832)


In December 2018 Fleur Ng'weno and a team of birdwatchers found the third colony of Clarke's Weaver.

Table: records of Clarke's Weaver breeding records

RecordDateNotesWeb links
123-26 March 2013c700 birds nesting in wetland sedges news
29 May-11 June 2015c80 nests in wetland sedges news
37 December 2018over 100 nests in wetland sedges PHOWN record

All 3 records of breeding were of nests in sedges in wetlands in the Dakatcha woodlands. The breeding seasonality varies widely, probably depending on local rainfall, as the sedges need to be in standing water. The colonies are north of the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest (dark green patch in google satellite photo below), the forest being the traditional locality for birders wanting to tick this species.

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Clarke's Weaver colonies in Kenya
Yellow line shows range of Clarke's Weaver
(arrow shows 3rd colony)
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Clarke's Weaver males in colony