Ploceidae is a family of small passerine birds, many of which are called weavers, weaverbirds, weaver finches and bishops. These namescome from the nests of intricately woven vegetation created by birds in this family. In most recent classifications, Ploceidae is a clade, which excludes some birds that have historically been placed in the family, such as some of the sparrows, but which includes the monotypic subfamily Amblyospizinae. The family is believed to have originated in the mid-Miocene. All birds of the Ploceidae are native to the Old World, most in Africa south of the Sahara, though a few live in tropical areas of Asia. A few species have been introduced outside their native range.
The family Ploceidae was introduced by the Swedish zoologist Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1836. These species are not closely related to the sparrows nor to the Emberizidae, according to Luis Allende and colleagues. The family is divided into the buffalo, sparrow, typical, and widow weavers. Weavers get their name because of their elaborately woven nests.
Genera
The following genera are currently classified within the family Ploceidae. For more detail, see list of Ploceidae species.
The males of many species in this family are brightly coloured, usually in red or yellow and black. Some species showvariation in colour only in the breeding season. These are seed-eating birds with rounded conical bills.
Distribution and habitat
The weaverbird colonies may be found close to bodies of water.
Although weavers are named for their elaborately woven nests, some are notable for their selective parasitic nesting habits instead. The nests vary in size, shape, material used, and construction techniques from species to species. Materials used for building nests include fine leaf fibers, grass, and twigs. Many species weave very fine nests using thin strands of leaf fiber, though some, like the buffalo-weavers, form massive untidy stick nests in their colonies, which may have spherical woven nests within. The sociable weavers of Africa build apartment-house nests, in which 100 to 300 pairs have separate flask-shaped chambers entered by tubes at the bottom. The sparrow weavers live in family units that employ cooperative breeding. Most species weave nests that have narrow entrances, facing downward. Many weaver species are gregarious and breed colonially. The birds build their nests together for protection, often several to a branch. Usually the male birds weave the nests and use them as a form of display to lure prospective females.
