#widowbirds

[platypusesforarms]

Long-tailed Widowbird 🐦 Earth Odyssey S06E14 "Eyes to the Sky"

Decked in such finery, this bird flies over its territory seeking females to seduce. It is a polygamist, having up to four mates who are especially attracted to males with long tail feathers. But the longer the feathers, the more difficult it is to fly. Any bird strong enough to overcome this seasonal hindrance is bound to be a good potential partner.

[witchstone]

fan-tailed widowbird (euplectes axillaris) from the wetland walk with the bird club last month

[thalassarche]

White-winged Widowbird (Euplectes albonotatus) - photo by Derek Keats

[bjekkergauken]

37. Widowbirds

More planet earth 2 paintings

[platypusesforarms]

Long-tailed Widowbird 🐦Earth Odyssey S06E14 "Eyes to the Sky"

Usually this bird looks more like a beige sparrow. But during the mating season the male moults, becoming completely black but for red and white epaulettes on its wings. It grows tail feathers - exactly 12 - and they can be over two feet long.

[ainawgsd]

The red-collared widowbird (Euplectes ardens) is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae. Red-collared widowbirds are found in grasslands and bush clearings in Eastern and Southern Africa. They are known for their long tails and brilliant red badges, both of which act as sexual ornaments. They are often associated with other widowbird and bishop species. They are polygynous, where males acquisition of territory is an important determinant in their access to mates. The red-collared widowbirds are not considered to be globally threatened. They have a very wide range and are found commonly in many regions.

Similar to other widowbirds, male red-collared widowbirds have both seasonal and sexual dimorphism. Males are about 9.8 inches in length while females are only about 11 inches. A similar trend is seen with weight, where males range from 20 to 26 g and females are only between 16 and 22 grams. During non-breeding seasons, the male plumage is brown, while in breeding season, October to April, they have black plumage with a long tail, approximately 8.6 inches, and crescent-shaped carotenoid based chest patch. The red-collared widowbird has one of the highest measured plumage carotenoid concentrations in birds. There is a high presence of lutein and zeaxanthin in the feathers, which is consistent with their high dietary consumption of grass seeds. There is significant variation in brightness, hue, and chroma of the carotenoid badges.  In contrast, females and subadults, like nonbreeding males, are streaky dull brown with a short tail, approximately 1.5 inches. Nonbreeding males, however, retain their black tails, while females and subadults' tails are dark-brown. 

In the red-collared widowbird there is a strong trade-off between carotenoid coloration, which is an agonistic signal and tail length, which is an epigamic signal, directly attracting females. During prenuptial moulting, prior to the breeding season, the males replace their non-breeding feathers. Males that hold territory have shorter tails and carotenoid collars that are 40% larger than nonbreeding floating males . The red collar is for male-male competition, while female choice is based on tail length. Tail length is negatively correlated with carotenoid signal. Also, looking at body size and condition, this accounts for 55% of the variation in tail length. Female preference for long tails was first observed in long-tailed widowbirds, and then subsequently observed in Jackson's widowbird and the red-collared widowbird. Tail length explains 47% of the male's reproductive success, indicating the strength of this sexual ornament.  

The red collar functions as a dominance signal, which was supported experimentally through manipulation of the badges. The experiment showed that red-collared males dominated orange males, which in turn dominated brown and blue collared males. Furthermore, with additional manipulation of badges, males with enlarged red, enlarged orange, and reduced red collars obtained territories, while those with reduced orange and blackened or removed collars failed to establish or maintain territories. Lastly, males with reduced signals defended smaller territories, had more intruders, and spent more time, thus increased cost, on aggressive interactions. Collectively, these observations led to the conclusion that redness, and to a lesser degree size, indicate dominance status and fighting ability in male contests.

The tail length itself is the strongest predictor of mating success. However, when the tails were experimentally manipulated, comparing a shortened tail to the control, these males had equal success in acquiring territory with no difference in size or quality. The long-tailed controls spent less time flying and performing courtship displays and they attracted higher quality and more nesting females compared to short-tailed males. Demonstrating the high cost of the long tail, the control birds with longer tails showed a more significant decline in condition, measured by relative body mass, compared with shorter tailed birds. Additionally, longer tails are aerodynamically costly, hindering flying ability by increasing drag. Both the short tailed and control residents have declined condition compared to the floaters, the males who did not establish territories, which suggests an interaction between tail lengths and there is high cost of territory acquisition, defense, and courtship displays.

Red-collared widowbirds feed on seeds of sorghum and other grass seeds. They also feed on nectar, small berries, and insects, specifically ants, caterpillars, and termites. They often form large roosts, with between 50 and 100 individuals, which feed together on the ground.

[ainawgsd]

The long-tailed widowbird (Euplectes progne), also known as the "Sakabula", is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae. The species are found in Angola, Botswana, the DRCongo, Kenya, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, and Zambia. The long-tailed widowbird is a medium-sized bird and one of the most common in the territories it inhabits. Adult breeding males are almost entirely black with orange and white shoulders (epaulets), long, wide tails, and a bluish white bill. Females are rather inconspicuous, their feathers streaked tawny and black with pale patches on the chest, breast and back, narrow tail feathers, and horn-colored bills. Immature males and females are very similar in appearance to the adult female. However, immature males, much like adult non-breeding males, are slightly larger than adult females.

When flying, male long-tailed widowbirds are readily visible due to their extremely long tails. Between six and eight of their twelve tail feathers are approximately half a metre (approximately 20 inches) long. The tail during flight display is expanded vertically into a deep, long keel below the male as he flies with slow wingbeats 0.5 to 2 metres (20 to 78 inches) above his territory. Because of the seemingly large cost to such male ornaments, the long-tailed widowbird has been the subject of extensive research into the function and evolution of sexually selected traits. This research has demonstrated the existence of female choice in sexual selection and indicates the trade-offs between sexual appeal and physical constraints with regard to the evolution of sexual ornaments.

Non-breeding males are slightly larger than females, though they demonstrate a remarkably similar appearance. For the most part, these males are colored in the same manner as the females, except in that they are more broadly streaked above and below and have wings and wing shoulders with the morphology of the breeding class of males. Rarely, males in the non-breeding class have elongated brownish black tail feathers, though these feathers are substantially shorter than those of the breeding class.

Long-tailed widowbirds are generally found in swampy grassland in flocks consisting of one or two males and a number of females. The males fly with their tails drooping and somewhat spread, and with slow regular movements of their wings. In wet weather, they are unable to fly due to their elongated tails. During the non-breeding season, long-tailed widowbirds congregate into flocks, which can be found roosting in reed beds.

Males defend territories in the grasslands the species inhabits. Females have a long nesting period and survey these territories and the males that inhabit them prior to mate selection. Females weave nests, shaped in large dome structures with a lining of seedheads, in the high grass within males' territories. The nests are placed 19 to 40 inches off the ground in the upper third of the high grass, where the females raise their two to three young. Females often mate with the male within whose territories they nest. Females lay one to three eggs after mating, and these are pale bluish green and streaked with brown.

The long-tailed widowbird's diet generally consists of seeds, supplemented occasionally by arthropods. The birds do most of their foraging in flocks on the ground, though they are occasionally observed hawking insects airily.

[thalassarche]

Red-collared Widowbird (Euplectes ardens) - photo by Mark Scott-Parkin