Red Munia

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Red Munia
Male in breeding plumage
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Passeriformes Family: Estrildidae Genus: Amandava Species: A. amandava
Binomial name
Amandava amandava Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms
Estrilda amandava

The Red Munia, Amandava amandava also known as Red Avadavat or Strawberry Finch, is a sparrow-sized bird of the Munia family. It is found in South Asia with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km². They are popular cage birds due to the colourful plumage of the males in their breeding season. Their normal habitat is open grassland and paddy fields. They breed in the monsoon season. The species name amandava and the common name of avadavat is derived from the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat from where these birds were exported into the pet trade.

The species is native to Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Burma, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand and Vietnam

Introduced populations also exist in southern Spain, Brunei, Fiji, Malaysia, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore and Hawaii.

[edit] References

• BirdLife International (2004). Amandava amandava. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern

[edit] External links

• BirdLife Species Factsheet
• IUCN Red List

[edit] Gallery

Male in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

In flock in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.