Introduction

Lichtenstein wrote a brief description in Latin for the Little Weaver, noting its slender bill, and noted its origin as Senegambia. He did not mention the collector, but two type specimens are in the Berlin Museum of Natural History, and the labels list Delbruck, a German collector. Lichtenstein did not list the number of specimens, so there may be more types in other museums.

The first illustration of a Little Weaver is a colour painting by Vieillot 1825. The next illustration contains line drawings in Swainson 1838 (not shown here), and then the next published illustration is by Jardine 1849, again in colour but including a female.

The Little Weaver had first been described by Vieillot 1823 as Ploceus personatus but all subsequent authors only saw later reprints of Vieillot's work, and thus considered Lichtenstein's name to have priority. It is unclear which publication (Lichtenstein 1823 or Vieillot 1823) appeared in print first.

Scientific citation

Meaning of names

First English name

Alternate names

Collector

Date collected

Locality collected

Type specimens

Identification. The Little Weaver Ploceus luteolus is one of the smallest weavers, and is found in the savanna belt from West to western East Africa. The male in breeding plumage has has a black forecrown, face and throat surrounded by bright yellow, without any of the saffron wash typical of larger weavers. It may be separated from the similar Slender-billed Weaver by its dry woodland habitat, and much shorter bill (14 vs 17 cm). It is distinguished from the Lesser Masked Weaver by its brown, not white, eye. The female and non-breeding male are yellowish.

Distribution. The Little Weaver occurs from West Africa across to Ethiopia and Eritrea, and south to Lake Victoria (see map left, based on Birds of Africa). Two races have been proposed previously, but the species is currently treated as monotypic.

Habitat. The Little Weaver inhabits savanna woodland with large Acacia trees, open scrubland with small trees, edges of farmland and large gardens, arid thornscrub and red sandy country. It is not gregarious; usually being in pairs, sometimes singly or in small flocks.

Food. The Little Weaver feeds on seeds and insects, including small beetles and caterpillars. The Little Weaver forages mainly in acacias and other small trees, working methodically through the foliage. It sometimes feeds on the ground, and may forage with waxbills.

Breeding. The Little Weaver is a monogamous, solitary nester and rarely, in colonies. A pair often returns to the same site in successive years.

The nest is a globular structure with a short, vertical entrance tube at the side. The nest is densely woven by the male using fine, narrow herb and grass stems, grass blades, palm fronds and small vine tendrils. The nest is lined with grass seedheads and other fine material. The length of the entrance tunnel varies from 50 to 300 mm.

The nest is suspended from thorny branches of small trees, often close to occupied wasp nests. Nest construction takes 3-4 days. The male may continue working on the tunnel, even after breeding has ended. The 2-3 eggs are plain white, ovate, and slightly glossy.

Nests of the Little Weaver may be taken over by Red-cheeked Cordon-bleus Uraeginthus bengalus.