#whydahs

[snototter]

A male long-tailed paradise whydah (Vidua paradisaea) in Kruger National Park, South Africa

by Rob Keulemans

[spinus-pinus]

Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura

9/23/2023 Orange County, California

[grushenko]

Shaft-tailed Whydah near the small town of Kgomo Kgomo, North West Province, South Africa. #shafttailedwhydah #whydahs #birding #theflacksphotography #birds #Africa #repost @the flacks photography #birdsofsouthafrica https://www.instagram.com/p/B0oCKC7hCBD/?igshid=63o9q2nm1v12

[spinus-pinus]

Exclamatory Paradise-Whydah Vidua interjecta

10/7/2023 San Diego Zoo, California

[spinus-pinus]

Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura

10/7/2023 San Diego Zoo, California

[spinus-pinus]

Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura

8/7/2022 Orange County, California

These are very interesting little non-native birds. The male, pictured here, grows this long tail during the breeding season to attract the females. They're very small birds, so seeing them fly around with tails this long is like seeing a flying lollipop.

They are nest parasites, and there are breeding populations of them in Southern California... but they don't parasitize native bird nests. Instead, they actually parasitize another non-native species: the scaly-breasted munia. While munias and whydahs do not overlap in their native range, they are apparently compatible enough for the munias to host whydah babies!

[x]

[thalassarche]

Pin-tailed Whydah (Vidua macroura) - photo by Hans Overduin