| Golden-breasted bunting | |
|---|---|
 | |
| The nominate subspecies inHluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve, South Africa | |
| Song of nominate subsp. recorded at Loteni in theDrakensberg, South Africa | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Emberizidae |
| Genus: | Emberiza |
| Species: | E. flaviventris |
| Binomial name | |
| Emberiza flaviventris Stephens, 1815 | |
| Synonyms | |
Fringillaria flaviventris | |
Thegolden-breasted bunting (Emberiza flaviventris) is apasserinebird in thebunting family Emberizidae. It occurs in dry open woodlands and moist savanna in Africa south of theSahara, but is absent from theequatorial forest belt.
The genus nameEmberiza is fromOld GermanEmbritz, a bunting. The specificflaviventris is fromLatinflavus - "yellow", "golden-yellow"; andventer,ventris - "belly".[2] The origin of the English "bunting" is unknown.[3]
There are threesubspecies:
The golden-breasted bunting is 15–16 cm long. The adult male has striking head pattern with a white crown, black lateral crown stripes, whitesupercilium and black-bordered white ear coverts. The underparts are orange-yellow becoming yellow on the throat and whitish on the lower belly. The upperparts are chestnut with a grey rump. The browner wings have two conspicuous white wing bars. The sexes are very similar, but females may have a buff tone to the white head markings and browner head stripes, and the back may have dark streaks. Young birds are duller and paler than the females.
SubspeciesE. f. princeps is similar to the nominate subspecies, but larger, and paler below.E. f. flavigaster is more distinctive, having a paler, redder back, pale grey rump, paler yellow underparts and whiter flanks.
This species is found in a variety of open woodlands. The subspeciesflavigaster favoursacacia steppe and savannah, with the other subspecies occurring in a wider range of lightly wooded country including gardens.
The golden-breasted bunting's call is a nasal ascendingzzhrr. The song is variable, but includes aweechee weechee weechee.
The golden-breasted bunting builds an untidycup nest lined with fine grass or hair low in a shrub or sapling. The two or three eggs are glossy white or cream and marked with black lines. The eggs hatch in 12–13 days and the chicks fledge in another 16–17 days.
The golden-breasted bunting is not gregarious, and is normally seen alone, in pairs or small groups. It feeds on the ground on seeds, insects and spiders, animal prey being taken mostly when the birds have young. This species is generally resident, but there appears to be degree of local movement. It is often quite tame.
