The dusky indigobird, variable indigobird, or black widowfinch is a species of bird in the family Viduidae. It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Guinea-Bissau, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitat is moist savanna.
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa
Typical Environment
Found widely across moist savannas, grassy woodlands, and edges of cultivation. It favors areas near watercourses and fallow fields where grasses set seed. Often occurs alongside its firefinch hosts in lightly wooded habitats. Uses scattered shrubs and low trees for song perches during the breeding season.
Altitude Range
0–2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
This brood-parasitic finch lays its eggs in the nests of firefinches, and its chicks mimic the host chicks’ mouth markings to secure feeding. Males learn and mimic the songs of their specific host species, which helps attract females raised by the same host. Breeding males are uniformly glossy dark, while females are inconspicuous and sparrow-like. It is also called the variable indigobird or black widowfinch.
Dusky Indigobird
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with bounding, undulating flight
Social Behavior
Males hold song perches and display within or near the territories of their host firefinches. The species is polygynous and does not build its own nest, instead laying eggs in host nests. Pairs do not maintain long-term bonds; females visit male territories to mate and then seek host nests for parasitism.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Male song is a complex series of trills, buzzes, and whistles that closely mimic the calls and songs of the host firefinch species. Calls include sharp chip notes and soft rattles during display.
Plumage
Breeding male is uniformly glossy blue-black to dusky indigo with a satin sheen; nonbreeding male duller. Female is brown and heavily streaked above with paler, buffy underparts and faint wingbars.
Diet
Primarily eats small grass seeds and other fine grains picked from the ground or from seed heads. Supplements its diet with small insects, especially during the breeding season. Forages singly or in loose association with small finches.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in open grassy areas, field margins, paths, and fallow farmland where seeding grasses are abundant. Also uses the edges of savanna woodland and village surroundings.
