Red-headed Finch ( Amadina erythrocephala, family: Estrildidae)

red headed finch Kruger National Park birds The Red-headed Finch (Latin name Amadina erythrocephala) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 856 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 1041 also a picture of the Red-headed Finch on page 1057. The Red-headed Finch belongs to the family of birds classified as Estrildidae. According to the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology the Red-headed Finch is also known by these other names: Paradise Sparrow, Red-headed Amadina, Red-headed Weaver Finch.

In the previous edition of Roberts (ie 6th edition) the Red-headed Finch was called the

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

Kruger Park Redheaded FinchNear endemic species is one that is confined to a specific geographical region rather than a single country for example. Certain birds in The Kruger National Park are near endemic to Mozambique, and Zimbabwe for example. One such example is the Red-headed Finch and this species depends upon a certain type of habitat for survival. Destroy that habitat and the bird becomes endangered.

In terms of distribution of the Red-headed Finch in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Red-headed Finch has been recorded in only 1 sections of the arbitrary Kruger Park regions I selected.

The Red-headed Finch.

Identification assistance for this avian species ...

One of the first indicators to take note of when trying to identify a bird is it relative size. For example how big is the bird compared to a well known familiar bird. The Red-headed Finch is a small bird about the size of a house sparrow. Do not take this relative indicator as anything other than a rough easy to remember indicator. It is not a accurate visualization. The height of the Red-headed Finch is about 14 cms and its weight is about 24 gms

You will find that the male Red-headed Finch plumage and colours are different to that of the female Red-headed Finch

  • Head is red.
  • Eye is brown.
  • Bill is white.
  • Throat is orange.
  • Back is orange, yellow.
  • Legs are pink.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Red-headed Finch feeds on the ground, and on the wing mainly

Invertebrates

Seeds

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Red-headed Finch is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Amadina erythrocephala will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Red-headed Finch is to create the nest on the ground. The bird lays eggs which are brown in colour and number between 2 to 5

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Red-headed Finch are: woodlands and arid areas including grasslands

You will normally see the Red-headed Finch in flocks.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Unknown

Zulu ... Unknown

Afrikaans ...Rooikopvink

German ... Rotkopfamadine

Portuguese ... Degolado-de-cabea-vermelha

French ... Amadine tte rouge

Dutch ... Roodkopamandine

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For in-depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references ...

Robert's 7th edition number ... 856

The main reference source for this data was "Roberts - Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition" . Other references were "Newmans Birds of the Kruger Park" by Keith Newman published circa 1980 . Names in foreign languages were obtained from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town website , www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za