The Cape Sparrow

“Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?”

Cape Sparrow ( Passer Meralunus )

Afrikaans – Gewone Mossie ; isiZulu – uNdlunkulu

Sparrows are most beautiful of birds in their common gentle modest dignity, always warm and kind, loving, cheerful and playful. Alert and quick, often seen hopping vigorously about in the garden. Pecking for seeds and mainly feeding on plant material also small insects, larvae and worms. Sparrows forage hopping on the ground in pairs or sometimes family groups. Sometimes they are together as flocks of hundreds communally in trees.
~

The friendly little bird is plentiful in towns and villages and common from large cities to remote savannah. From grasslands and grain fields they are found commonly in farmyards parks and gardens adapting well to human activity and are fairly tame. Habitation is often close to human settlements, sparrows are not afraid of people. They are found also in semi-arid regions usually near water. The distribution is widespread to central western and southern regions of southern Africa. They are not migratory, a common near endemic resident but can be locally nomadic in arid regions.
~

The Cape Sparrow is every shade of brown, white and black, females are similar to males but the coat is a bit dull and drab. A smallish bird and the most distinguished of the sparrow family, it is typically 15cm long and 28grams the females are a bit smaller.

The head and neck of males are black and with a very characteristic prominent white C behind the eyes. The nape and mantle are greyish, the back and rump bright chestnut and upper wings chestnut black and white in patterns, belly is white and eyes dark brown.

Female colouring is similar to males but not so bold, a bit pale and drab it is more grey where black, the white parts are duller too. Immature birds look more like females. The house sparrow (Passer Domesticus) is similar.
~

The voice is musical and pleasing, rolling mellow chirps and chatting in repeated jerking of varied pitch. A lengthy singing starts from before dawn.
~

A nest is built typically under roofs' eaves, shelter from cold, shielded of wind and rain. Roosting in pairs, nests are untidy balls of grass and weeds and feathers, cotton and small pieces cloth scraps of soft material such as little pieces string are collected for a warm cluttered cosy nest. Nesting under telephone pole crossbars also or thorn trees wall creepers and so on, both male and female brood the eggs taking turns with three to six eggs white or greenish and spotted brown.
~

The sparrow is a little bird of humble beauty and warm love.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for itself”.