The Baya Weaver Male-A Smart Polygamist
The Baya Weaver Bird, Ploceus phillippinus resembles a sparrow in size. It lives in flocks. The average life span is 10 to 15 years. In non breeding season both sexes are similar looking almost like a hen sparrow. The male acquires a bright yellow cap in the breeding season. It is the male alone that builds the nest. The nest is a swinging retort shaped structure of intricately woven paddy leaves or rough edged grasses with a long vertical entrance tube.
On the advent of the breeding season, the Baya picks up on its nest building activities. The Baya is a smart polygamist. Flocks of all male adults aggregate to start building individual nests and when the nests are half done, the females inspect the nests before adopting one and moving in. The nest is then completed by the male and as soon as the hen settles herself on the eggs, the male deserts her and starts building another nest which will be occupied by another female and so on. This process results in a male acquiring 4 to 5 females in a breeding season. Parental care is restricted to the female.
Whatever the pattern, bird nests are always true to the type of species that builds it. It is the outcome of instinct as fixed and inherited through countless generations of builders. Experiments have shown that birds hatched in an incubator, will at the appointed time build nests after their own specific pattern.
©Srimaa Communication
Credits : Dr. Yashpal Singh, Mrs. Neena Singh, Mr. Rajesh Bedi, Manoj Kumar Yadav