News / 25 October 2016

The Pink-throated Twinspot

TRUE!

The male Pink-throated Twinspot is notable for the colourful spray of pink plumage that adorns their neck and breast. Both male and female Twinspots sport distinct spotted plumage below the breast, however the female has brown plumage across the breast and neck instead of pink.

 

Did You Know?

The Pink-throated Twinsport is not threatened globally, but is near-threatened in South Africa and Swaziland due to its small distribution range, habitat destruction and the cage-bird trade. An estimated 2000 birds are thought to be exported from Mozambique every year.

• Its breeding habits are not well known, since only two nests have been reported in the wild.
• The nest is an untidy ball with a side entrance, made of dry grass or leaf ribs, skeletonised leaves, inflorescences and spider webs, lined with palm fibres and leaf litter. It is typically concealed in dense vegetation and leaf litter, less than one metre above ground.
• Only one clutch of three eggs has been recorded, laid in January, although it can lay up to four eggs in captivity.
• In captivity the chicks stay in the nest for 20-21 days.
• The Pink-throated Twinspot mainly eats seeds of grasses, most likely supplemented with insects since it eats them in captivity.