Baya Weaver Male

The male bird, the master craftsman who builds a nest that can last a full season – upto 3 months for its usage and then abandoned for other birds like silverbill etc which use the abandoned nests. The whole activity of building the nests is to woo a mate. The nests are made of blades of grass that are bought and weaved together to make a looped attachment to a branch or a hanging cable, different chambers and a tube shaped entrance.  The weaver birds are also known to knot together the grass blades using their beak…at times even doing a reverse knot. To build a nest the bird makes on an average anything upwards of 500 trips.

Baya Weaver, Female

This is an image of the Baya waver, female. The weaver birds are known for their nests which is a marvel to look at and admire. The nests are generally built on areas palm, acacia or other thorny varieties. These are primarily seed eaters, and their IUCN category is least concern. The female of the species is easily identified by the lack of the yellow crown on the head (more visible during breeding season). The build – beak etc are like munias and share quite a few of their habits. The role of the female in building the nests is nothing in the start but once she inspects and accepts a nest and the male as the mate, it is the female bird which completes the nest.