Southern masked weaver

Ploceus velatus

The Southern masked weaver (Ploceus velatus) is a bird found in South Africa and Namibia. Savanna, gardens and wetland edges in southern Africa. It eats insects and other small invertebrates, seeds and nuts and leaves and other plant parts. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

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Scientific name	Ploceus velatus
Region	Africa
Found in	South Africa and Namibia

🏡 Where the Southern masked weaver lives

Savanna, gardens and wetland edges in southern Africa.

🍽️ What it eats

🐛 Insects & bugs40%
🌰 Seeds & nuts30%
🌿 Leaves & plants20%
🦴 Leftovers (carrion)10%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Least ConcernThere are plenty of these birds.

💡 Males weave nests out of grass, and females reject poor ones.

Hear the Southern masked weaver

Recorded by African Bioacoustics Community (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC1149928. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Southern masked weaver

Where does the Southern masked weaver live?

The Southern masked weaver lives in South Africa and Namibia. Savanna, gardens and wetland edges in southern Africa.

What does the Southern masked weaver eat?

insects and other small invertebrates (about 40%), seeds and nuts (about 30%), leaves and other plant parts (about 20%), dead animals (carrion) (about 10%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Southern masked weaver endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Africa

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.