A burly bird covered in subtle shades of brown and gray surprises everyone by highlighting its golden orange tail.
Meet the brown-chested mannequin
Photo courtesy of JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) / CC BY-SA 4.0
The chestnut-breasted munia (Lonchura castaneothorax), also known as the chestnut-breasted munia or bully bird. A small, brown-backed bird with a black face, heavy bill, and grayish crown and nape. The crown is gray, the breast is chestnut, separated from the white underparts by a black bar. The rump and tail are a golden orange hue, with a black underside.
Photo (cropped) Courtesy of Dan Armbrust / CC BY 2.0
Females are pale compared to males, while males are uniformly olive-brown above, pale below with a buff-brown color and no face or black bar on the breast.
This species is found and endemic to Australia, New Caledonia, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.
Photo courtesy of Graham Winterflood / CC BY-SA 2.0
However, it has been introduced into French Polynesia and France.
Photo (cropped) Courtesy of Paul Balfe / CC BY 2.0
The chestnut-breasted dummy is a bird that likes to frequent reed beds and grasses that border rivers, swamps, grassy areas and mangroves. He also likes cane fields and cereal crops. In dry seasons it is seen in arid areas, but always near water.
Photo courtesy of Steve Dew / CC BY 2.0
Seed lovers, these birds like barley and millet seeds, and have been seen eating wild sugar cane in Papua New Guinea.
Photo courtesy of Jim Bendon / CC BY-SA 2.0
During the breeding season, these birds nest in colonies, quite close to each other, in grass clumps, about 2 m from the ground. A round nest is made of green or dry grass blades, lined with finer grass. The nest is built by both the male and the female, who incubate the eggs and feed the young.
Photo courtesy of Mike’s Birds / CC BY-SA 2.0
Due to the wide distribution of this bird, this species does not approach the Vulnerable thresholds according to the IUCN size criteria.
Photo courtesy of Tony Hisgett / CC BY 2.0
Watch this bird right here in the video below:
