Bronze Mannikin

About the Bronze Mannikin

The bronze mannikin or bronze munia (Spermestes cucullata) is a small passerine (i.e. perching) bird of the Afrotropics. This very social estrildid finch is an uncommon to locally abundant bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara Desert, where it is resident, nomadic or irruptive in mesic savanna or forest margin habitats. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 23,600,000 km2 (9,100,000 sq mi). It is the smallest and most widespread of four munia species on the African mainland, the other being black-and-white, red-backed and magpie mannikin. It co-occurs with the Madagascar mannikin on the Comoro Islands, and was introduced to Puerto Rico. Especially in the West Africa, it is considered a pest in grain and rice fields. It is locally trapped for the pet bird trade.

Source: Wikipedia

Classification

Scientific name

Spermestes cucullata

Family

Waxbills and Allies

Order

Passeriformes

Similar species

Other members of the waxbills and allies family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.

• African Firefinch Lagonosticta rubricata
• African Silverbill Euodice cantans
• Black-and-white Mannikin Spermestes bicolor
• Black-rumped Waxbill Estrilda troglodytes
• Blue-capped Cordonbleu Uraeginthus cyanocephalus
• Chestnut Munia Lonchura atricapilla
• Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild
• Crimson-rumped Waxbill Estrilda rhodopyga
• Cut-throat Amadina fasciata
• Diamond Firetail Stagonopleura guttata
• Double-barred Finch Stizoptera bichenovii
• Gouldian Finch Chloebia gouldiae