# Purple Grenadier

*Granatina ianthinogaster*

Despite their brilliant purple and blue plumage, these birds are masters of camouflage among the shadowed branches of thorny acacia bushes.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Estrildidae › Granatina
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Dry subtropical and tropical shrubland, acacia savannas, and semi-arid brush.
- **Diet:** Primarily grass seeds, supplemented with small insects like termites and spiders during the breeding season.
- **Range:** Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Uganda
- **Size:** 13-14 cm in length, weighing 12-16 grams
- **Lifespan:** 5-8 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Localized habitat degradation from overgrazing and agriculture, and occasional capture for the cage-bird trade.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless and highly active. Observe these small finches quietly from a safe distance of 5-10 meters using binoculars, as they are easily startled. They pose no physical threat to humans.

## About

The purple grenadier ( Uraeginthus ianthinogaster ) is a common species of estrildid finch found in eastern Africa.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/18d2e03b-0984-4c06-b48e-ca74dd1b4a31
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/145337
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granatina ianthinogaster
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/6555268/medium.jpg (DickDaniels, CC-BY-SA, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.