Village Indigobird
Vidua chalybeata
Photographed in a Nairobi urban garden, Kenya. December 2011. This is an adult male showy in feather and song.
These small perching songbirds lay their eggs not in their own nests but in nests built and tended by Red-billed Firefinches; both species were found in the same garden habitat. This behavior is termed brood parasitism. Female indigobirds are drably colored in shades of pale brown helping them to avoid predators and attention from its host. The irridescence of males may appear blue, green or all black depending on lighting. Food consists mainly of seeds and grain.
Viduidae -- Indigobird and Whydah Family
Books Available for Sale on ABE Books:
- Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania by Zimmerman et al.
- Birds of East Africa by Stevenson and Fanshawe