African Silverbill Life History

Habitat

African Silverbills inhabit dry savannas, thorn scrub, and acacia woodland, but usually occur near water. They also utilize the edges of cultivated areas with sorghum and millet. In the Hawaiian Islands, African Silverbills show the same habit, occurring near water in otherwise dry habitats.

Food

African Silverbills feed mainly on grass and weed seeds, but they also eat some aphids and other small insects. This species usually forages in flocks on the ground.

Nesting

Nest Placement

Often placed in a shrub 1–1.5 meters (3–5 feet) above the ground, or near the end of a thorn tree branch.

Nest Description

A large, messy ball with a side entrance hole. Made with grass and twigs and lined with feathers or soft grasses. Also uses the old nests of weavers (Ploceidae) and sparrows (Passeridae).

Nesting Facts

Behavior

African Silverbills are social birds that usually occur in groups, with flock size increasing during the nonbreeding season. In East Africa, this species often forms mixed-species flocks with Gray-headed Silverbill. African Silverbills typically nest in pairs rather than colonies, building a bulky, globe-shaped structure. They also use the old nests of other species, especially weavers and sparrows. Silverbills that breed in an old weaver colony may nest close to one another, just a few meters apart. Incubation lasts 11–13 days, and chicks leave the nest after 21 days.

Conservation

The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists African Silverbill’s conservation status as Least Concern. The population size is unknown, but this species has an extremely large range, suggesting that the population—which appears stable—is greater than the Vulnerable threshold of 10,000 mature individuals.

Credits

BirdLife International. 2018. Euodice cantans. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22719761A131997328. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22719761A131997328.en.

Clement, P., A. Harris, and J. Davis. (1993). Finches and Sparrows. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, USA.

Floyd, T. (2025). Field Guide to the Birds of the United States and Canada. Eighth edition. National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C.

Payne, R. B. (2020). African Silverbill (Euodice cantans), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.afrsil1.01

Pratt, H.D., Bruner, P.L. and Berrett, D.G. (1987). A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton, New Jersey.

Raine, H. and A. F. Raine (2020). American Birding Association Field Guide to Birds of Hawai'i. Scott & Nix, Inc. New York, NY, USA.

Zimmerman, D. A., D. A. Turner and D. J. Pearson. (1996). Birds of Kenya and northern Tanzania. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press.

Back to top