Red-billed firefinch facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Red-billed firefinch
Male and female of the nominate subspecies, both in The Gambia
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Genus:	Lagonosticta
Species:	senegala
Synonyms
Fringilla senegala Linnaeus, 1766

The red-billed firefinch or Senegal firefinch (Lagonosticta senegala) is a small, colorful bird. It loves to eat seeds and lives in many parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. You can often find these birds near where people live. They are known for their bright red color and soft calls.

All About the Red-billed Firefinch

How This Bird Got Its Name

In 1760, a French zoologist named Mathurin Jacques Brisson described the red-billed firefinch. He saw a bird from Senegal and called it Le Sénégali rouge. Later, in 1766, a famous Swedish scientist named Carl Linnaeus gave the bird its official scientific name, Fringilla senegala.

Today, this bird is placed in a group called Lagonosticta. This group was created by a German bird expert, Jean Cabanis, in 1851. Giving birds two names, like Lagonosticta senegala, is called binomial nomenclature. It helps scientists around the world know exactly which animal they are talking about.

There are six slightly different types, or subspecies, of the red-billed firefinch:

• L. s. senegala: Found in places like Mauritania, Senegal, and Gambia.
• L. s. rhodopsis: Lives in eastern Nigeria, Sudan, and parts of Ethiopia.
• L. s. brunneiceps: Found in central Ethiopia and southeast Sudan.
• L. s. somaliensis: Lives in southeast Ethiopia and southern Somalia.
• L. s. ruberrima: Found in places like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and Kenya.
• L. s. rendalli: Lives in southern Africa, from Angola to South Africa.

What Does the Red-billed Firefinch Look Like?

The red-billed firefinch is about 10 centimeters (4 inches) long. The adult male is mostly bright red, except for its brown wings. It has a pink beak and a yellow ring around its eye.

Female firefinches are mostly brown on their upper parts. Their undersides are a pale yellowish-brown. They have a small red patch in front of each eye. Their beak is also pink, just like the males.

Where Do Red-billed Firefinches Live?

This bird is very common and can be found in many places across Sub-Saharan Africa. They often live close to people's homes and farms. You might see them with other birds, like the red-cheeked cordon-bleu. Their soft "queet-queet" call is a sound you hear often in Africa. Their song sounds like a rising "chick-pea-pea-pea."

What Do Red-billed Firefinches Eat and How Do They Live?

Red-billed firefinches are social birds. They often gather in groups. They mainly eat grains and other small seeds. You can find them in open grasslands and cultivated areas.

They build a large, dome-shaped nest out of grass. It has an entrance on the side. They usually build their nests low in a bush, a wall, or even in thatch roofs. The female lays three to six white eggs. Sometimes, another bird called the village indigobird lays its eggs in the firefinch's nest.

Images for kids

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  male L. s. brunneiceps, Ethiopia

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  female L. s. brunneiceps, Ethiopia

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  male L. s. rendalli
  South Africa

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  juvenile L. s. rendalli
  South Africa

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  female L. s. ruberrima
  Lake Baringo, Kenya

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  pair of L. s. senegala, Gambia