Taveta Golden Weaver / Ploceus castaneiceps, Calgary Zoo

Thursday, 24 June 2021: I have just added five photos from my archives. As I check and then delete some of my old image folders, I quickly copy a handful of photos to maybe post to Flickr. Felt a need for some colour, too, as so many of my recent photos have green as a background - trees or field. I am adding the description I wrote under a previously posted photo taken on the same Zoo visit, on 29 September 2015.

"This photo was taken when I went to the Calgary Zoo, on 29 September 2015. Several of these small, colourful birds had made nests that were hanging from the leaves of an indoor tropical plant. They are such busy little birds, constantly collecting very narrow, long strands of leaf for their weaving. This bird is a little male, as usual, more colourful than the female.

"The Taveta weaver (Ploceus castaneiceps) is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is found in Kenya and Tanzania. The name of the bird comes from the unique markings/coloration of the bird, as well as how these birds weave intricate nests.

The male Taveta weaver is a vibrant golden yellow color; this color is duller on its back. The wings and tail are a greener color. The back of the head is red, and the bill, or beak, is black. The female is an olive color with paler streaks. In general, the Taveta weaver is a small bird, around the size of the finch and closely related to the sparrow.

These birds live in large groups, or colonies. Weavers often make a unique—often described as "weird"—noise to communicate. Male weavers build extravagant oval nests over water attached to stems of reeds or grasses. The Taveta weavers lay two or three glossy, dark, olive-green eggs. The female bird chooses who she will mate, depending on how impressed she is with a male's skill to construct a nest." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taveta_weaver

On 29 September 2015, I had set my alarm clock for 6:30 am so that I could go on a birding walk with friends. Unfortunately, I didn't read the e-mail carefully enough, so hadn't seen that the meeting place was not where I thought. Of course, no one else showed up where I was, so I took myself off to the Calgary Zoo instead. I had planned on going there after the walk, anyway. This may be the last time I go to the Zoo until next spring, as they have closed "my" parking lot at the west entrance till April next year. The north entrance is way out of my driving comfort zone, especially the drive back home. One of my favourite things at the Zoo is the butterfly room, but the season is over till around next April."

Taken on: September 29, 2015

Tags:

Calgary

Alberta

Calgary Zoo

TransAlta Rainforest

ornithology

avian

bird

tropical

captive

zoo

“Taveta

Weaver”

Golden

“Ploceus

castaneiceps”

Order: Passeriformes

Family: Ploceidae

Genus: Ploceus

vibrant

Status: Least Concern

found in Kenya and Tanzania

colour

colourful

male

yellow

perched

branch

“back/side

view”

bokeh

indoor

early fall

29 September 2015

FZ200

FZ200#3

Panasonic

Lumix

annkelliott

Anne Elliott

Sets appears in: • Calgary Zoo 6 • 2021, my most interesting photos

Groups appears in: • Zoo • Panasonic FZ series more » • PHOTOGRAPHERS OF CANADA • Calgary Zoo • For the Love of Yellow • Zoos Around the World • Panasonic Lumix Lovers • Panasonic FZ 200 - Successor to the FZ 150 • Calgary Zoo Photography « less

Camera: Panasonic DMC-FZ200, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, 108mm, ISO 250 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Panasonic DMC-FZ200
Aperture:	f/2.8
Exposure Time:	0.008 sec (1/125)
Focal Length:	108mm
ISO:	250
Exposure Bias:	+0.33 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Gain Control:	High gain up
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Elements 12.0 Windows
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