Cisticola juncidis
The Zitting Cisticola – also known as the Streaked Fantail Warbler in parts of its range – is the most widely distributed of its family and occurs over much of Africa, Europe, Asia and Australia with most of these populations being resident year round. In South Africa it is found in all our provinces, being absent only from the driest parts in the west of the country. The IUCN, siting its wide distribution and apparently increasing population, lists the Zitting Cisticola as being of least concern.
Zitting Cisticolas inhabit open country; naturally mostly savannas, grasslands and seasonally flooded wetlands, but they’ve also taken to croplands, golf courses and airstrips. They feed exclusively on insects and other invertebrates and have a special liking for grasshoppers.
In the breeding season, which peaks in summer, the male constructs a pear-shaped nest inside a tuft of green grass using spider web and plant material – a process that could take in excess of 2 weeks to complete without any guarantee that the female will approve (and if she doesn’t, he has to take the whole thing apart and start over!). The female in turn is solely responsible for incubating the clutch of 2-5 eggs over a two week period, and she also does most of the feeding of the chicks which grow rapidly and fledge within 2 weeks of hatching. Infidelity is common among males and he may have several consecutive mates in a breeding season, and sometimes more than one at the same time! Adults weigh around 9g and measure about 11cm long. They’re usually encountered alone or in pairs and the males are probably territorial.
Ai, die wyfies wat so onvergenoegd oor ‘n ou huisie/nessie kan wees, ne? En hulle lyk nogal bedrywig, maar jy het nogtans daarin geslaag om mooi foto’s te neem.
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Hulle is regtig lewendige voeltjies – wie sou kon raai om goggas te eet gee soveel energie!
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It has the coolest name.
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A very good imitation of its chirp, Tracy!
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You have some lovely photos here. Amazing to see the large tick on the one poor bird. I have not got to grips with identifying cisticolas! I have just listened to a recording of the call and can hear how the bird got its common name!
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identifying the cisticolas can be very difficult indeed if they’re not calling, which is why my newest bird guide book’s barcodes with which you can quickly compare calls using your phone is so handy!
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Those barcodes connecting to call sounds very handy indeed!
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I definitely consider it a vast improvement over the onomatopoeic way their calls were described in previous editions (and for which I am obviously too unmusical to understand!)
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So ‘n pragtige ou klein voeltjie Dries!
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En so lewendig, Aletta! Stil sit vir n foto is nie hulle forte nie.
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Dan het jy dit goed bemeester Dries!
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Dis eintlik verneuk as mens nie die dosyne flopsies ook wys nie! 😀
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Ek weet presies waarvan jy praat😄🙄
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So very smart of you to identify this (to me) LBJ not once, but several times 🙂
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If it weren’t for their characteristic voice, Anne, I would’ve struggled!
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Beautiful shots with a handsome bird against a very nice blurry background.
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Very kind of you, Hien. Thank you!
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