The White-browed Sparrow-weaver (Plocepasser mahali) is a predominantly brown, sparrow-sized bird found throughout central and north-central southern Africa. It is found in groups of two to eleven individuals consisting of one breeding pair and other non-reproductive individuals.
Range map from www.oiseaux.net - Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
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White-browed Sparrow-weaver keeping us company at lunch
Sabana Beach Resort at Lake Langano, Ethiopia - October 2019
White-browed Sparrow-weaver keeping us company at lunch
Sabana Beach Resort at Lake Langano, Ethiopia - October 2019
Taxonomy and systematics During his expedition to the interior of southern Africa in 1834–35, Andrew Smith collected specimens of the white-browed sparrow weaver at the Modder River, which he described in 1836, giving it the scientific name Plocepasser mahali.
Etymology
Smith did not provide an explanation for the species epithet mahali, but is clear it is not a Latin name. Probably it is derived from the vernacular name for the bird in Setswana mogale or from the Sesotho word mohale, a brave or fierce person, which suggests the bird's name may refer to its angry scolding.[3]
Vernacular names
Other common names used in English include black-billed mahali weaverbird, black-billed sparrow weaver, Kismayu sparrow-weaver, stripe-breasted sparrow-weaver, white-browed weaver bird, and white-crowned weaver bird.
Subspecies
There are four recognized subspecies of the white-browed sparrow-weaver:
• P. m. melanorhynchus is found in eastern Africa
• P. m. pectoralis is found from Botswana to Tanzania and western Mozambique
• P. m. ansorgei is found in southern Angola and northern Namibia
• P. m. mahali is found from southern Namibia to Zimbabwe and South Africa