The Red Avadavat, also known as the Strawberry Finch or Red Munia, is a small, vibrant bird belonging to the Estrildidae family. Males display striking red plumage, particularly during their breeding season. Its captivating appearance has made it a popular choice among bird enthusiasts, leading to its presence in aviculture globally.
Identifying Features
The Red Avadavat is a diminutive bird, typically measuring between 9 to 10 centimeters (approximately 3.5 to 4 inches) in length and weighing around 7 to 15 grams. It has a rounded black tail and a beak that turns bright red during the breeding period. Males become predominantly scarlet red across their head, back, and underside during this time.
During this vibrant phase, males have distinctive white spots on their flanks, wings, and tail coverts. They also have a black eye-stripe, often with a white stripe just beneath the eye. Outside the breeding season, the male’s coloration dulls, resembling the female with a reddish-brown upper body and fewer white spots, though the red rump usually persists. Females are generally more subdued, with brownish upperparts, a paler underbelly, and less prominent white spotting. Juveniles are dull grayish-brown, lacking adult red or white spots, and their beaks are initially black, gradually turning pink with age.
Habitat and Geographic Distribution
The Red Avadavat is native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, inhabiting flat plains with tall grasses or crops, often near water sources. Its natural range spans from Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh in the west, extending eastward to Myanmar, Thailand, parts of China, Vietnam, Java, and Bali. This species thrives in environments like grasslands, open fields, reed beds, and cultivated areas such as rice paddies and sugarcane fields.
While primarily sedentary, Red Avadavats may disperse locally, particularly during the monsoon season, relocating to areas with abundant water and food resources. It has been widely introduced globally, establishing populations in the Philippines, Japan, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and parts of southern Spain and Egypt.
Behavior and Ecology
Red Avadavats primarily feed on seeds, particularly from grasses and small herbs. Their diet expands to include small insects, such as termites, especially during the breeding season when protein is essential for raising chicks. These birds forage by picking seeds directly from the ground or from plant seed heads.
Outside the breeding season, Red Avadavats are gregarious, seen in small to large flocks, sometimes numbering up to 100 individuals. They engage in social preening, which helps maintain social bonds. The Red Avadavat produces a distinctive low, single-note “pseep” call often heard in flight, and its song consists of a series of low notes.
During the breeding season, which often coincides with the monsoon season in their native range, pairs form and construct globular, domed nests from grass blades and plant fibers. These nests are built low to the ground in dense vegetation, such as thick bushes or grass clumps, or even in building crevices. Females lay a clutch of 4 to 6 white eggs, incubated by both parents for 11 to 13 days. Both parents feed the chicks, which fledge around 17 to 21 days after hatching.