Kingdom Animalia Order Passeriformes Genus Euplectes Higher classification Euplectes | Phylum Chordata Family Ploceidae Scientific name Euplectes macroura Rank Species | |
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Similar Yellow‑mantled weaver, Euplectes, Black‑winged red bishop, Red‑collared widowbird, Bird | ||
The yellow-mantled widowbird (Euplectes macroura), also known as the yellow-backed widow, is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae. It is the type species of the Euplectes genus, originally named from the city of Ouidah in Benin. Nowadays the name whydah (from "Ouidah") is however applied to some species in the Viduidae.
Males are larger than females and acquire longer tails and striking black and golden yellow plumages in the breeding season. The mantle colour is either golden yellow, or in the case of the northeastern race, E. m. macrocercus, black. The yellow shoulders persist in all male plumages, whether breeding or non-breeding.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland. It is widely distributed in Africa, and is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The distinct race E. m. macrocercus occurs in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda.