Weaver species list / RELATED SPECIES: Bar-winged Weaver / Brown-capped Weaver / Dark-backed Weaver / Golden-naped Weaver / Maxwell’s Black Weaver / Olive-headed Weaver / Preuss’s Weaver / Red-bellied Malimbe / Red-headed Malimbe / Red-headed Weaver / Usambara Weaver / Yellow-capped Weaver / Yellow-legged Weaver / Yellow-mantled Weaver
IUCN: Least concern Discovery: 096
Categories: long tube, cooperative, Malimbus, fruit
Discovery
  
IntroductionThe Red-bellied Malimbe was formally described by Anton Reichenow, a German ornithologist and herpetologist.The Red-bellied Malimbe was collected by Georg August Zenker, a German zoologist and botanist. In 1886 Zenker accompanied Italian explorers on an expedition to the lower reaches of the Congo River, where he then settled on a plantation in Gabon. The company had to give up the plantation in 1889, so the company owner made Zenker head of the research station at Yaounde in the interior of Cameroon – Zenker remained here from 1889-1895. Zenker collected 5000 plant specimens and a number of birds which were sent to the Berlin Museum. Zenker collected two Red-bellied Malimbes, a male and a female, sometime between 1889 and 1893, probably closer to 1893. The types are in the Berlin Museum. Zenker also collected the Yellow-capped Weaver in the same time period but probably before the Red-bellied Malimbe as the weaver was described first. The first illustration of the Red-bellied Malimbe was of the type male and female, published by Reichenow (1896). The next illustration was by Ogilvie-Grant 1910 of the male. Scientific citationMalimbus erythrogaster Reichenow 1893c, Orn. Monatsb., 1, p.205, Jaunde, Cameroon. Meaning of nameserythrogaster, Greek: Eruthros, red; gaster, the belly. First English nameRed-breasted Malimbe (Shelley 1905b). Alternate namesRed-bellied Weaver, Red-breasted Malimbe, Semliki Red-bellied Malimbe. CollectorGeorg August Zenker. Date collectedBetween 1889-1893. Locality collectedJaunde, Cameroon. Type specimensThe types are in the Berlin Museum (ZMB_31798, ZMB_31799). |
The above is based on Weaver Wednesday 2, a weekly series about the discovery of each weaver species.
This species text first appeared as Weaver Wednesday [213] – Discovery [96]: Red-bellied Malimbe on 2016-07-13
1. Basic biology
 Identification. The Red-bellied Malimbe is the only malimbe with entirely red underparts from the breast to the vent; the vent may be black in eastern populations, however. The red head and black face are shared with several other malimbe species.The female is similar to the male but has a orange-red chin and throat, and is paler below. The juvenile is duller and browner than the female. Distribution. The Red-bellied Malimbe is found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, PRCongo, and DRCongo (see map above, based on Birds of Africa). There are no subspecies and the Red-bellied Malimbe is poorly known. Habitat. The Red-bellied Malimbe inhabits high canopy in the interior of dense lowland forest, keeping at least 25 m from the forest floor. It also occurs in open dry forest and secondary forest. It is usually in pairs or small family parties. The Red-bellied Malimbe joins mixed-species foraging flocks. It regularly perches on dead branches at the top of trees. Food. The Red-bellied Malimbe feeds on insects including beetles, caterpillars, bugs, grasshoppers and their eggs. It also feeds on small snails, some fruit and some small seeds. It forages in open tops of emergents and in thinly leaved trees, amongst clusters of dead leaves, and on dead branches and trunks.  Breeding. The Red-bellied Malimbe is usually a solitary nester but may be colonial. It appears to have helpers at the nest. The nest is a well-woven globular chamber with an entrance tube 18cm long. The nest is placed very high in forest, in thick outer foliage, or attached to branches of tall trees. It is woven of pieces of small vines. The long spout seems to be added during the rearing of the young. The eggs are unknown, and nothing else is known about its breeding habits. Nests may be clustered in the same tree as the nest of Crowned Eagles Stephanoaetus coronatus, which provides protection from monkeys. |
The above is based on Weaver Wednesday, a weekly series about weaver species.
This species text first appeared as Weaver Wednesday [112]: Red-bellied Malimbe on 2014-08-06
2. Breeding facts
| Pair bond Monogamous Breeding season Nest site Nest building Colony size Clutch size Egg colour Egg size Incubation Chicks and nestling period |
Breeding information based on Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 15.
3. Photos of Weaver Nests
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