Introduction

Albin, an English naturalist and water-colour illustrator, included a short text and copper plate engraving illustrations in his book "A natural history of birds", and Vol 2 contained the Black-throated Weaver. Albin listed the two birds as a pair but they actually represent males, although they are poor illustrations. Albin called the birds Passer bengalensis (Bengale Sparrow), and Linnaeus used this name, although placing the bird in the genus Loxia.

Edwards published his own version of the birds 13 years later, and provided a metal engraving which was a more accurate illustration of the species, indicating that he probably saw the Dandridge collection. Edwards called it the Yellow-headed Indian Sparrow.

Scientific citation

Meaning of names

First English name

Alternate names

Collector

Date collected

Locality collected

Type specimens

Distribution. The Black-throated Weaver occurs in eastern Pakistan (in the Indus floodplain), northern India (mainly in the Ganges floodplain from Punjab east to West Bengal and Assam) and southern Nepal to Bangladesh. There are also scattered records in peninsular India (see map below, based on Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 15). No subspecies are recognised.

Habitat. The Black-throated Weaver inhabits lowland grassy areas near water, with tall standing grass and reeds, especially in areas with periodic flooding.

Food. The Black-throated Weaver feeds mainly on seeds, including those of grasses, rice, wheat, millet and sorghum. Nestlings are fed mainly with insects, especially grasshoppers, and also caterpillars, beetles, spiders, and small snails. This species is gregarious, foraging in flocks, and often foraging and roosting with other species.

Breeding. The Black-throated Weaver is polygynous. It nests singly or in scattered colonies of 4 or 5 nests, and sometimes in larger colonies. The male courts females with quivering wings, and bows downwards to expose the yellow crown. The nest is retort-shaped with an entrance tunnel of 6-30 cm length. The nest is woven by the male from strips of grass or reed blades. It is suspended 1-2 m above the ground from grasses or attached to reeds or bulrushes, and rarely in trees. At an early stage of building (the "helmet" stage), the inner rim is plastered with cow dung or human faeces, and bright yellow flowers. If a female accepts a nest structure, it is then completed, and no further decorations are added. A male may have up to 4 nests at one time.

The clutch is usually 3 eggs which are white and unmarked. The female incubates and feeds the chicks, with the male contributing food during the final five days. Nests may be destroyed by grazing cattle, and by people harvesting reeds. Intraspecific brood parasitism probably occurs as clutches of around 6 eggs have been found.

Deserted nests may be used for roosting and breeding by the Indian Silverbill Euodice malabarica, and also by the long-tailed tree mouse Vandeleuria oleracea.