# Common Waxbill

*Estrilda astrild*

They often build a 'cock's nest'—a false nest—on top of their actual breeding nest to confuse and distract potential predators.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Estrildidae › Estrilda
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** increasing
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Tall grasslands, reed beds, marshes, and agricultural fringes, usually near water sources.
- **Diet:** Primarily small grass seeds, supplemented with termites and other small insects during the breeding season.
- **Range:** Sub-Saharan Africa, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Hawaii, Puerto Rico
- **Size:** 11-13 cm length; 7-10g weight
- **Lifespan:** 4-8 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Generally secure, though localized populations may face habitat loss or capture for the pet trade.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. These birds are shy and will fly away if approached too closely. Maintain a distance of 5-10 meters to observe natural foraging behavior. They pose no risk to humans.

## About

The common waxbill ( Estrilda astrild ), also known as the St Helena waxbill , is a small passerine bird belonging to the estrildid finch family. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa but has been introduced to many other regions of the world and now has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km2. It is popular and easy to keep in captivity.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/9bd78e62-61e4-45b9-827b-a5da2c7fc137
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/13770
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estrilda astrild
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/32093669/medium.jpeg (Douglas, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

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