


Top 20 Most Common Bird in Nampula
Nampula is characterized by diverse ecosystems that encourage the habitation of many avian species. The 20 most common birds exhibit unique features and adaptations, like sharp vision and vibrant plumage, suited for Nampula's biomes. Whether hunting in the dense forests or flourishing in the arid landscapes, each bird contributes to the ecological balance, making Nampula a veritable bird watcher's paradise.

Most Common Bird

1. Sombre Greenbul
The sombre greenbul is 15–18 cm long, with mainly dull greyish olive-green plumage, paler on the underparts than above. There are variations in colour based on habitat range. Individuals located in southern Africa tend to be plain, olive-green. To the north, birds are yellower with greener upper parts. It has a white iris. The sexes are similar in plumage, but juveniles are even duller than the adult and have dark, grey eyes. There is no colour distinction among sexes. The subspecies A. i. hypoxanthus is much yellower below than the nominate subspecies. The sombre greenbul is a vocal species, and the most typical call is a monotonous, ringing phrase starting with a penetrating single whistle weeeewee, followed by a jumbled chortle and ending off with a rather plaintive, drawn out whistle willy. If agitated, a call of peeet peeet peeet repeatedly is likely to be heard.


2. Common Bulbul
The bill is fairly short and thin, with a slightly downcurving upper mandible. The bill, legs, and feet are black and the eye is dark brown with a dark eye-ring, which is not readily visible. It is about 18 cm in length, with a long tail. It has a dark brown head and upperparts. Sexes are similar in plumage.


3. Brimstone Canary
The brimstone canary is 15–16 cm in length with a heavy bill, which is short, conical and very stout at the base. The bill is light brown with a pinkish or yellowish base. The legs and feet are pinkish-brown. It has yellow-green upper parts with dark green streaking, yellow-green ear coverts and malar stripe, and two yellow wing bars. The underparts are yellow, with a greenish wash on the flanks, and breast. The sexes are similar, but the male is brighter, with a bigger bill, better defined face pattern, brighter yellow wing bars and a greenish rump. Young birds are duller, greyer and less yellow below than the adults. The degree to which this bird is green or yellow varies considerably across regions. Southern birds are greener than northern birds, even within subspecies, notably with C. s. sharpii. For an overview of finch phylogeny (including canaries) see the entry on finches. The brimstone canary can be confused with the yellow-fronted canary, but that species is smaller billed with a much more defined head pattern and a bright yellow rump. The yellow canary, with overlapping range, is also a known confusion species. The call notes of the brimstone canary in the south of its range are a trilled, deeply pitched swirriwirrit or chirrup. The song is a jumble of chirps, whistles, warbles and trills, with the same deep pitch as the call. Northern birds have a faster, higher, less jumbled and more tuneful version of the song.


4. Little Egret
The small size of the little Egret makes the bird easily recognizable among larger species that share the same range. The egret is seen almost anywhere there are small fish including marshes, estuaries, and rivers. The bird often searches for food by itself but prefers to build nests in communities, occasionally with other bird species.

5. Pied Crow
It is approximately the size of the European carrion crow or a little larger (46–50 cm in length) but has a proportionately larger bill, slightly longer tail and wings, and longer legs. As its name suggests, its glossy black head and neck are interrupted by a large area of white feathering from the shoulders down to the lower breast. The tail, bill and wings are black too. The eyes are dark brown. The white plumage of immature birds is often mixed with black. It resembles the white-necked and thick-billed ravens but has a much smaller bill.


6. African Pipit
The African pipit is 15 to 17 cm long and is a slender bird with an erect stance. It is buffy-brown above with darker streaks. The underparts are white or pale buff with a streaked breast and plain belly and flanks. The face is boldly patterned with a pale stripe over the eye and a dark malar stripe. The outer tail-feathers are white. The legs are long and pinkish and the slender bill is dark with a yellowish base to the lower mandible. Juvenile birds have a blotched breast, scalloping on the upperparts and some streaking on the flanks. The song is a repeated series of twittering notes, given during an undulating song-flight or from a low perch. The Cameroon pipit is slightly larger and darker with buff underparts.


7. House Sparrow
Just as its name implies, the little house Sparrow socializes with humans more than any other bird species. Able to adapt and thrive in almost any habitat, excluding the extremes such as deserts and mountain peaks, this species was once restricted only to North Africa and Eurasia but now is found across the globe. Unfortunately, this opportunistic eater is not completely harmless—it can cause considerable damage to crops.

8. Yellow-bellied Greenbul
The yellow-bellied greenbul (Chlorocichla flaviventris) is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern, southern and west-central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, and dry savanna.


9. Common Sandpiper
While the common Sandpiper is considered a common shorebird around lakes and rivers, it does have a unique trait. The small bird bobs its tail, giving the appearance of wagging. The bird communicates with others by chirping in the air, but is silent when feeding on small crustaceans and invertebrates.

10. Scarlet-chested Sunbird
The scarlet-chested sunbird (Chalcomitra senegalensis) is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.


11. Grey Heron
The grey Heron is a very common species to come across in marine, brackish, and freshwater ecosystems; these habitats must have at least four months of warm weather or else these birds will migrate for new breeding grounds. The grey Heron hunts by wading through shallow waters looking for fish and various invertebrates; their natural diet helps control some aquatic species populations.

12. Spotted Eagle-owl
The spotted eagle-owl (Bubo africanus; also known as the African spotted eagle-owl and the African eagle-owl) is a medium-sized species of owl, one of the smallest of the eagle owls. Its length is 45 centimetres (18 in) and its weight is from 454 to 907 grams (1.0 to 2.0 lb). It has a 100 to 140 centimetres (39 to 55 in) wingspan. The facial disk is off white to pale ochre and the eyes are yellow. It has prominent ear tufts, and the upper body is dusky brown, the lower parts off-white with brown bars. Prior to 1999 the spotted eagle-owl was considered conspecific with the greyish eagle-owl, but now it is classed as a separate species.


13. Laughing Dove
The laughing Dove is a small dove named after its distinctive laugh-like vocalization. This ground-feeding, non-migratory bird is a regular inhabitant of man-altered environments such as villages, gardens, and orchards. In cities, these doves tend to become quite confident. They pair for life and live in very small communities.

14. Red-faced crombec
The red-backed Gumbuck (Sylvietta whytii) is a songbird of the Macrosphenidae family. With the Senegalese krombek (S. brachyura) and the Somali krombek (S. philippae) the bird forms a so-called super species of very similar, related species.

15. Red-eyed Dove
The red-eyed dove is a largish, stocky pigeon, typically 30 cm (12 inches) in length. Its back, wings and tail are pale brown. When flying, it shows blackish flight feathers. The head and underparts are dark vinous-pink, shading to pale grey on the face. There is a black hind neck patch edged with white. The legs and a patch of bare skin around the eye are red. The call is a loud doo-doo-du-du. Sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller than adults, and have scalloping on the body feathers. Red-eyed doves eat grass seeds, grains and other vegetation. They often forage on the ground.


16. Red-faced Mousebird
The red-faced mousebird (Urocolius indicus) is a species of mousebird or coly. It is a common in southern Africa from Zaire, Zambia and Tanzania south to the Cape. Its habitat is savanna with thickets, fynbos scrub, other open woodland, gardens and orchards. This bird is about 34 cm (13 inches) long, with the tail comprising approximately half the length. The crested head and breast are pale cinnamon with a red bill and eye mask. The rest of the upperparts and tail are blue-grey apart from a paler grey rump. The belly is whitish. The sexes are similar, but juveniles lack the crest and have a green mask. Their call is tree-ree-ree whistle, and regularly called in multiple repetitions. Red-faced mousebirds make the same call whether in-flight or perched. The red-faced mousebird is a frugivore which subsists on fruits, berries, leaves, seeds and nectar. Its flight is typically fast, strong and direct from one feeding area to another. This is a social bird outside the breeding season, feeding together in small groups, normally of about half a dozen birds, but sometimes up to 15 or more. They fly and interact in tight collections. It engages in mutual preening and roosts in groups at night. It is more wary than other mousebirds. These sedentary birds breed between June to February. The nest is a large untidy cup of plant material lined with material such as sheep wool. The clutch is 2-6 eggs which hatch in about two weeks.


17. Rattling Cisticola
The rattling cisticola (Cisticola chiniana) is a species of bird in the family Cisticolidae which is native to Africa south of the equator, and parts of East Africa. It is a common to abundant species in open savanna and scrubland habitats, whether in arid, moist or upland regions. Especially during summer, it is highly conspicuous due to its strident and repetitive call-notes from prominent perches.


18. Whimbrel
The whimbrel is a shorebird that is often found in coastal areas. It is often present in flocks, mixing with other shorebirds. It is distinguishable by its short, high-pitch whistles that males often emit to warn others of potential predators. A primary food source for the shorebird in the winter is the fiddler crab. Its curved bill allows the bird to easily dig into the crab’s burrow.

19. Black-backed Puffback
They measure about 17 cm in length, and the sexes are similar though easily distinguishable. Adult males have the upperparts deep blue-black with a slight luster. The black cap subtends the red eye, the upperpart plumage is black-and-white, and the underparts pure white. Females have a black loral stripe and white supraloral feathering, with the ear coverts pale and the crown not solidly black. They also have greyer backs than males, and grey to buffy tones to the white plumage tracts. Immature birds resemble females, but have brownish bills and brown irides, while the upperparts and flanks are still greyer, and the underparts and edges of the wing feathers are yet more buffy. Intraspecific variation is clinal. Range, iris colour, wing markings and the female plumage assist in separating it from other puffback species.


20. House Crow
The house Crow is an intelligent bird that is near becoming a declared invasive species. The house Crow is very common in developed areas and can have a bold, aggressive personality. These birds have been known to damage and steal crops, affect local flora and fauna, create excessive noise, and carry diseases and parasites.