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101-596: Chad Basin National Park lies within the former Kanem–Bornu Empire , which existed from the 9th century to the end of the 19th century and remains part of present-day Borno and Yobo states . It was established in 1991. Before the 10th century, the Empire was established and was one of the most politically well-organised African empires tantamount to the Mali and Songhai empires . The then Borno Empire developed within

202-691: A scorched earth policy if necessary for the conquest of fortified towns and other strongholds. Ribāts were built on frontiers, and trade routes to the north were secure, allowing relations to be established with the Pasha of Tripoli and the Turkish empire . Between 1574 and 1583, the Borno sultan had diplomatic relations with the Ottoman sultan Murad III, as well as with the Moroccan sultan Ahmad al-Mansur, in

303-575: A fortified capital at Ngazargamu , to the west of Lake Chad (in present-day Nigeria ), the first permanent home a Sayfawa mai had enjoyed in a century. So successful was the Sayfawa rejuvenation that by the early 16th century Mai Idris Katakarmabe (1507–1529) was able to defeat the Bulala and retake Njimi , the former capital. The empire's leaders, however, remained at Ngazargamu because its lands were more productive agriculturally and better suited to

404-461: A large cage for a wild animal, with vertical wooden bars." Mai Hummay began his reign in 1075, and formed alliances with the Kay, Toubou, Dabir, and Magumi. He became the first Muslim king of Kanem, having been converted by his Muslim tutor Muhammad Mānī . They remained nomadic until the 11th century, when they fixed their capital at Nijmi . Humai's successor, Dunama I (1098–1151), performed

505-444: A large scale. Red-billed queleas have also been observed feeding on crushed corn from cattle feedlots , but entire maize kernels are too big for them to swallow. A single bird may eat about 15 g (0.53 oz) in seeds each day. As much as half of the diet of nestlings consists of insects, such as grasshoppers, ants, beetles, bugs, caterpillars, flies and termites, as well as snails and spiders. Insects are generally eaten during

606-429: A narrow naked red ring and a brown iris . The legs are orangey in colour. The bill is bright raspberry red. Outside the breeding season, the male lacks bright colours; it has a grey-brown head with dark streaks, whitish chin and throat, and a faint light stripe above the eyes. At this time, the bill becomes pink or dull red and the legs turn flesh-coloured. The females resemble the males in non-breeding plumage, but have

707-578: A reddish bill. Breeding females attain a yellowish bill. Breeding males have a black (or rarely white) facial mask, surrounded by a purplish, pinkish, rusty or yellowish wash on the head and breast. The species avoids forests, deserts and colder areas such as those at high altitude and in southern South Africa. It constructs oval roofed nests woven from strips of grass hanging from thorny branches, sugar cane or reeds. It breeds in very large colonies. The quelea feeds primarily on seeds of annual grasses, but also causes extensive damage to cereal crops. Therefore, it

808-406: A result of administrative disorganization, regional particularism, and attacks by the militant Waddai Empire to the east. The decline continued under Umar's sons. In 1893, Rabih az-Zubayr led an invading army from eastern Sudan and conquered Bornu. Rabih's invasion led to the deaths of Shehu Ashimi , Shehu Kyari , and Shehu Sanda Wuduroma between 1893 and 1894. The British recognized Rabih as

909-647: A series of swampy valleys separated by scenic sand dunes. The valleys contain rich deposits of potash . Kanem%E2%80%93Bornu Empire The Kanem–Bornu Empire existed in areas which are now part of Nigeria , Niger , Cameroon , Libya and Chad . It was known to the Arabian geographers as the Kanem Empire from the 8th century AD onward and lasted as the independent kingdom of Bornu (the Bornu Empire ) until 1900. The Kanem Empire (c. 700–1380)

1010-401: A shallow awning. About six to seven hundred fresh, green grass strips are used for each nest. This species may nest several times per year when conditions are favourable. In the breeding season, males are diversely coloured. These differences in plumage do not signal condition , probably serving instead for the recognition of individual birds. However, the intensity of the red on the bills

1111-458: A single tree have been counted. At Malilangwe in Zimbabwe one colony was 20 km (12 mi) long and 1 km (0.6 mi) wide. In southern Africa, suitable branches are stripped of leaves a few days in advance of the onset of nest construction. The male starts the nest by creating a ring of grass by twining strips around both branches of a hanging forked twig, and from there bridging

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1212-552: A stratified topology. The northern part is within the Sahel zone while southern sector has a typical Sudan–Guinea savanna ecology, and includes Acacia - Balanites woodlands separated by dense stands of elephant grass and sorghum . Waters from the Dorma river flood much of the sector in the rainy season, creating flood-plain wetlands that attract waterbirds and other wildlife. The resident black crowned crane ( Balearica pavonina )

1313-475: A successful search, they settle to feed. In the heat of the day, they rest in the shade, preferably near water, and preen. Birds seem to prefer drinking at least twice a day. In the evening, they once again fly off in search of food. Natural enemies of the red-billed quelea include other birds, snakes, warthogs, squirrels, galagos , monkeys, mongooses , genets , civets , foxes, jackals, hyaenas, cats, lions and leopards. Bird species that prey on queleas include

1414-548: A very important part in Bornu politics, as eunuchs did in many Muslim courts". During the 17th century and 18th century, Bornu became a centre for Islamic learning. Borno sultans developed a political legitimacy based on their religious charisma, in the context of the rise of Sufism in Sahel. Islam and the Kanuri language was widely adopted, while slave raiding propelled the economy. Around this time, Fulani people invading from

1515-536: A warbling tweedle-toodle-tweedle . The red-billed quelea is mostly found in tropical and subtropical areas with a seasonal semi-arid climate , resulting in dry thornbush grassland, including the Sahel , and its distribution covers most of sub-Saharan Africa. It avoids forests, however, including miombo woodlands and rainforests such as those in central Africa, and is generally absent from western parts of South Africa and arid coastal regions of Namibia and Angola. It

1616-544: A waterhole were grabbed from below by African helmeted turtles in Etosha . Among the invertebrates that kill and eat youngsters are the armoured bush cricket ( Acanthoplus discoidalis ) and the scorpion Cheloctonus jonesii . Internal parasites found in queleas include Haemoproteus and Plasmodium . The red-billed quelea is caught and eaten in many parts of Africa. Around Lake Chad , three traditional methods are used to catch red-billed queleas. Trappers belonging to

1717-509: A white mask. The mask is surrounded by a variable band of yellow, rusty, pink or purple. White masks are sometimes bordered by black. This colouring may only reach the lower throat or extend along the belly, with the rest of the underparts light brown or whitish with some dark stripes. The upperparts have light and dark brown longitudinal stripes, particularly at midlength, and are paler on the rump. The tail and upper wing are dark brown. The flight feathers are edged greenish or yellow. The eye has

1818-424: A yellow or orangey bill and eye-ring during the breeding season. At other times, the female bill is pink or dull red. Newborns have white bills and are almost naked with some wisps of down on the top of the head and the shoulders. The eyes open during the fourth day, at the same time as the first feathers appear. Older nestlings have a horn-coloured bill with a hint of lavender, though it turns orange-purple before

1919-611: Is least concern according to the IUCN Red List . The red-billed quelea was one of the many birds described originally by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae . Classifying it in the bunting genus Emberiza , he gave it the binomial name of Emberiza quelea . He incorrectly mentioned that it originated in India, probably because ships from the East Indies picked up birds when visiting

2020-424: Is a small sparrow-like bird, approximately 12 cm (4.7 in) long and weighing 15–26 g (0.53–0.92 oz), with a heavy, cone-shaped bill, which is red (in females outside the breeding season and males) or orange to yellow (females during the breeding season). Over 75% of males have a black facial "mask", comprising a black forehead, cheeks, lores and higher parts of the throat. Occasionally males have

2121-532: Is abundant, but is considered vulnerable. The helmeted guineafowl ( Numida meleagris ) is also abundant. Demoiselle cranes ( Grus virgo ) visit in the winter, as well as large numbers of white storks ( Ciconia ciconia ). A 2007 report estimated that there were about 100 elephants in the sector, which may still migrate to and from the Waza park. The Cameroon and Nigerian park authorities have been cooperating to prevent poaching of wildlife and to raise awareness among

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2222-518: Is mentioned as one of three great empires in the Sudan region , by Ya'qubi in 872. He describes the kingdom of "the Zaghāwa who live in a place called Kānim", which included several vassal states . "Their dwellings are huts made of reeds and they have no towns." Living as nomads , their cavalry gave them military superiority. In the 10th century, al-Muhallabi mentions two towns in the kingdom, one of which

2323-442: Is much variability within subspecies, and some birds cannot be ascribed to a subspecies based on outward appearance alone. Because of interbreeding, specimens intermediate between subspecies may occur where the ranges of the subspecies overlap, such as at Lake Chad. The female pin-tailed whydah could be mistaken for the red-billed quelea in non-breeding plumage, since both are sparrow-like birds with conical red-coloured bills, but

2424-677: Is not recognised as distinct. Q. quelea intermedia , described by Anton Reichenow in 1886 from east Africa, is regarded a synonym of subspecies aethiopica . Linnaeus himself did not explain the name quelea . Quelea quelea is locally called kwelea domo-jekundu in Swahili , enzunge in Kwangali , chimokoto in Shona , inyonyane in Siswati , thaha in Sesotho and ndzheyana in

2525-463: Is regarded an indicator of the animal's quality and social dominance. Red-billed quelea males mate with one female only within one breeding cycle. There are usually three eggs in each clutch (though the full range is one to five) of approximately 18 mm (0.71 in) long and 13 mm (0.51 in) in diameter. The eggs are light bluish or greenish in colour, sometimes with some dark spots. Some clutches contain six eggs, but large clutches may be

2626-402: Is regarded as the most numerous undomesticated bird on earth, with the total post-breeding population sometimes peaking at an estimated 1.5 billion individuals. The species is specialised on feeding on seeds of annual grass species, which may be ripe, or still green, but have not germinated yet. Since the availability of these seeds varies with time and space, occurring in particular weeks after

2727-409: Is regarded as the most numerous undomesticated bird on earth, with the total post-breeding population sometimes peaking at an estimated 1.5 billion individuals. It feeds in huge flocks of millions of individuals, with birds that run out of food at the rear flying over the entire group to a fresh feeding zone at the front, creating an image of a rolling cloud. The conservation status of red-billed quelea

2828-422: Is sometimes called "Africa's feathered locust ". The usual pest-control measures are spraying avicides or detonating fire-bombs in the enormous colonies during the night. Extensive control measures have been largely unsuccessful in limiting the quelea population. When food runs out, the species migrates to locations of recent rainfall and plentiful grass seed; hence it exploits its food source very efficiently. It

2929-548: The Conventional Basin of Lake Chad , where the Chad Basin National Park stands. The park combines the former Chingurmi-Dugoma Game Reserve, Gorgoram and Zurgun Baneri Forest Reserves, and Bulature Oasis. As of 1999, it had not been surveyed, so the boundaries are not well-established. The park is used by many farmers, grazers and fishermen. Despite significant investment in lodgings for tourists,

3030-470: The Hadjerai tribe use triangular hand-held nets, which are both selective and efficient. Each team of six trappers caught about twenty thousand birds each night. An estimated five to ten million queleas are trapped near N'Djamena each year, representing a market value of approximately US$ 37,500–75,000. Between 13 June and 21 August 1994 alone, 1.2 million queleas were caught. Birds were taken from roosts in

3131-723: The Hajj three times before drowning at Aidab . At this time, the army included 100,000 horsemen and 120,000 soldiers. Kanem's expansion peaked during the long and energetic reign of Mai Dunama Dabbalemi (1210–1259). Dabbalemi initiated diplomatic exchanges with sultans in North Africa , sending a giraffe to the Hafsid monarch and arranged for the establishment of a madrasa of al-Rashid in Cairo to facilitate pilgrimages to Mecca. During his reign, he declared jihad against

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3232-640: The Sao civilisation . Under the leadership of the Duguwa dynasty , the Kanembu would eventually dominate the Sao, but not before adopting many of their customs. War between the two continued up to the late 16th century. One scholar, Dierk Lange, has proposed another theory based on a diffusionist ideology. This theory was criticized by the scientific community as it seriously lacks direct and clear evidence. Lange connects

3333-566: The Tsonga language . M.W. Jeffreys suggested that the term came from medieval Latin qualea , meaning "quail", linking the prodigious numbers of queleas to the hordes of quail that fed the Israelites during the Exodus from Egypt. The subspecies lathamii is probably named in honor of the ornithologist John Latham . The name of the subspecies aethiopica refers to Ethiopia, and its type

3434-474: The lanner falcon , tawny eagle and marabou stork . The diederik cuckoo is a brood parasite that probably lays eggs in nests of queleas. Some predators, such as snakes, raid nests and eat eggs and chicks. Nile crocodiles sometimes attack drinking queleas, and an individual in Ethiopia hit birds out of the vegetation on the bank into the water with its tail, subsequently eating them. Queleas drinking at

3535-726: The 'Sultan of Borno', until the French killed Rabih on 22 April 1900 during the Battle of Kousséri . The French then occupied Dikwa , Rabih's capital, in April 1902, after the British had occupied Borno in March. Yet, based on their 1893 treaty, most of Borno remained under British control, while the Germans occupied eastern Borno, including Dikwa, as 'Deutsch-Bornu'. The French did name Abubakar ,

3636-681: The 10th century. Kanem comes from anem , meaning "south" in the Teda and Kanuri languages, and hence a geographic term. During the first millennium , as the Sahara underwent desiccation , people speaking Kanembu migrated to Kanem in the south. This group contributed to the formation of the Kanuri . Kanuri traditions state the Zaghawa dynasty led a group of nomads called the Magumi. This desiccation of

3737-678: The 17th-century, European slaves are noted to have been imported to Bornu from the Barbary slave trade in Tripoli in Libya. Kanuri tradition states Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan established dynastic rule over the nomads around the 9th century through divine kingship . For the next millennium, the Mais ruled the Kanuri , which included the Ngalaga , Kangu, Kayi, Kuburi, Kaguwa, Tomagra, and Tubu. Kanem

3838-526: The African coast during their return voyage to Europe. It is likely that he had seen a draft of Ornithologia, sive Synopsis methodica sistens avium divisionem in ordines, sectiones, genera, species, ipsarumque varietates , a book written by Mathurin Jacques Brisson that was to be published in 1760, and which contained a black and white drawing of the species. The erroneous type locality of India

3939-463: The Bulala forced Mai Umar b. Idris to abandon Njimi and move the Kanembu people to Bornu on the western edge of Lake Chad. But even in Bornu, the Sayfawa dynasty's troubles persisted. During the first three-quarters of the 15th century, for example, fifteen Mais occupied the throne. Then, around 1460 Ali Gazi (1473–1507) defeated his rivals and began the consolidation of Bornu. He built

4040-816: The Chad Basin National Park in 2021; operations were also suspended in the Kainji National Park and the Kamuku National Park . The Chingurmi-Duguma sector is in the Bama Local Government Area of Borno State, adjoining the Waza National Park in the Republic of Cameroon , around coordinates 11°45′0″N 14°15′0″E  /  11.75000°N 14.25000°E  / 11.75000; 14.25000 . It has an area of 1,228 km (474 sq mi), with

4141-706: The Lake Chad Basin) is deemed insignificant. Woven traps made from star grass ( Cynodon nlemfuensis ) are used to catch hundreds of these birds daily in the Kondoa District , Tanzania. Guano is collected from under large roosts in Nigeria and used as a fertiliser. Tourists like to watch the large flocks of queleas, such as during visits of the Kruger National Park . The birds themselves eat pest insects such as migratory locusts , and

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4242-616: The Pachalik of Tripoli at that time. About two million slaves traveled this route to be traded in Tripoli, the largest slave market in the Mediterranean. As Martin Meredith states, "Wells along the way were surrounded by the skeletons of thousands of slaves, mostly young women and girls, making a last desperate effort to reach water before dying of exhaustion once there." Most of the successors of Idris Alooma are only known from

4343-508: The Sahara made some areas around Lake Chad unlivable, causing nomadic peoples from that area to navigate to the places where the empire would eventually be centralized. Kanem was connected via a trans-Saharan slave trade route with Tripoli via Bilma in the Kawar . Slaves were imported from the south along this route. In the 16th-century, Turkish musketeers where imported to Bornu, and in

4444-568: The Sahara resulted in two settlements, those speaking Teda-Daza northeast of Lake Chad, and those speaking Chadic languages west of the lake in Bornu and Hausaland . The origins of Kanem are unclear. The first historical sources tend to show that the kingdom of Kanem began forming around 700 under the nomadic Tebu-speaking Kanembu. The Kanembu were supposedly forced southwest towards the fertile lands around Lake Chad by political pressure and desiccation in their former range. The area already possessed independent, walled city-states belonging to

4545-713: The Shehu of Dikwa Emirate , until the British convinced him to be the Shehu of the Borno Emirate. The French then named his brother, Sanda, Shehu of Dikwa. Shehu Garbai formed a new capital, Yerwa , on 9 January 1907. After World War I , Deutsch-Bornu became the British Northern Cameroons . Upon Shehu Abubakar's death in 1922, Sanda Kura became Shehu of Borno. Upon his death in 1937, his cousin, Shehu of Dikwa Sanda Kyarimi , became Shehu of Borno. As Vincent Hiribarren points out, "By becoming Shehu of

4646-457: The beginning of rains weeks earlier, and the rainfall varies in a seasonal geographic pattern. The temporarily wet areas do not form a single zone that periodically moves back and forth across the entirety of Sub-Saharan Africa, but rather consist of five or six regions, within which the wet areas "move" or "jump". Red-billed quelea populations thus migrate between the temporarily wet areas within each of these five to six geographical regions. Each of

4747-536: The breeding season, though winged termites are eaten at other times. Breeding females consume snail-shell fragments and calcareous grit, presumably to enable egg-shell formation. One colony in Namibia, of an estimated five million adults and five million chicks, was calculated to consume roughly 13 t (29,000 lb) of insects and 1,000 t (2,200,000 lb) of grass seeds during its breeding cycle. At sunrise they form flocks that co-operate to find food. After

4848-447: The cage facilitates nesting. Adults are typically given a diet of tropical seeds enriched with grass seeds, augmented by living insects such as mealworms , spiders, or boiled shredded egg during the breeding season. Fine stone grit and calcium sources, such as shell grit and cuttlebone , provide nutrients as well. If provided with material like fresh grass or coconut fibre they can be bred. Sometimes called "Africa's feathered locust",

4949-529: The capital of the Kanem kings in the 13th century and Kanem as a powerful Muslim kingdom. Kanuri-speaking Muslims gained control of Kanem from the Zaghawa nomads in the 9th century during a period of ethnic conflict . Kanuri legend states that Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan founded the Sayfawa dynasty . The new dynasty controlled the Zaghawa trade links in the central Sahara with Bilma and other salt mines . Yet,

5050-400: The chicks hatch, they are fed for some days with protein -rich insects. Later the nestlings mainly get seeds. The young birds fledge after about two weeks in the nest. They are sexually mature in one year. Flocks of red-billed queleas usually feed on the ground, with birds in the rear constantly leap-frogging those in the front to exploit the next strip of fallen seeds. This behaviour creates

5151-464: The context of political tensions in the Sahara. The Borno sultan allied with the Moroccan sultan against the Ottoman imperialism in the Sahara. Ibn Furtu called Alooma Amir al-Mu'minin , after he implemented Sharia , and relied upon large fiefholders to ensure justice. The Lake Chad to Tripoli route became an active highway in the 17th century, with horses traded for slaves. An intense diplomatic activity has been reported between Borno and

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5252-460: The creation of Kanem–Bornu with the departure from the collapsed Neo-Assyrian Empire c. 600 BC to the northeast of Lake Chad. He also proposes that the lost state of Agisymba (mentioned by Ptolemy in the middle of the 2nd century ) was the antecedent of the Kanem Empire. Climate change ensured the rise of the early Kanem–Bornu Empire, as desertification that increased the spread of

5353-522: The empire is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle, or Girgam , discovered in 1851 by the German traveller Heinrich Barth . Remnant successor regimes of the empire, in form of Borno Emirate and Dikwa Emirate , were established around 1900 and still exist today as traditional states within Nigeria. Kanem was located at the southern end of the trans-Saharan trade route between Tripoli and

5454-745: The empire until the mid-17th century when its power began to fade. By the late 18th century, Bornu rule extended only westward, into the land of the Hausa of modern Nigeria . The empire was still ruled by the Mai who was advised by his councilors ( kokenawa ) in the state council or nokena . The members of his Nokena council included his sons and daughters and other royalty (the Maina) and non-royalty (the Kokenawa, "new men"). The Kokenawa included free men and slave eunuchs known as kachela . The latter "had come to play

5555-643: The environment is degrading. There is growing competition between humans and wildlife. Farmers set out poison to kill the crop-destroying Quelea quelea , in the process killing non-target species. Marginal land is now coming under cultivation and tree cover in the forest reserves is being depleted. The Bulatura sector is in the Yusufari Local Government Area of Yobe State, and has an area of 92 km around coordinates 13°15′0″N 11°00′0″E  /  13.25000°N 11.00000°E  / 13.25000; 11.00000 . The sector has

5656-592: The frontier'. Civil discord was said to follow his opening of the sacred Mune. By the end of the 14th century, internal struggles and external attacks had torn Kanem apart. War with the Sao brought the death of four Mai: Selemma , Kure Ghana es-Saghir , Kure Kura al-Kabir , and Muhammad I , all sons of 'Abdullāh b. Kadai . Then, war with the Bulala resulted in the death of four Mai in succession between 1377 and 1387: Daud Nigalemi , Uthmān b. Dawūd , Uthmān b. Idris , and Abu Bakr Liyatu . Finally, around 1387

5757-417: The gaps in the circle his beak can reach, having one foot on each of the branchlets, using the same footholds and the same orientation throughout the building process. Two parallel stems of reeds or sugar cane can also be used to attach the nest from. They use both their bills and feet in adding the initial knots needed. As soon as the ring is finished the male displays, trying to attract a female, after which

5858-467: The impression of a rolling cloud, and enables efficient exploitation of the available food. The birds also take seeds from the grass ears directly. They prefer grains of 1–2 mm (0.04–0.08 in) in size. Red-billed queleas feed mainly on grass seeds, which includes a large number of annual species from the genera Echinochloa , Panicum , Setaria , Sorghum , Tetrapogon and Urochloa . One survey at Lake Chad showed that two-thirds of

5959-560: The independent state of Nigeria. A remnant of the old kingdom was (and still is) allowed to continue to exist, in subjection to the various Governments of the country as the Borno Emirate . Quelea quelea The red-billed quelea ( / ˈ k w iː l i ə / ; Quelea quelea ), also known as the red-billed weaver or red-billed dioch , is a small—approximately 12 cm (4.7 in) long and weighing 15–26 g (0.53–0.92 oz)—migratory, sparrow-like bird of

6060-495: The local off-set of rains, queleas migrate as a strategy to ensure year-round food availability. The consumption of a lot of food with a high energy content is needed for the queleas to gain enough fat to allow migration to new feeding areas. When breeding, it selects areas such as lowveld with thorny or spiny vegetation—typically Acacia species—below 1,000 m (3,300 ft) elevation. While foraging for food, they may fly 50–65 km (31–40 mi) each day and return to

6161-627: The local people of the longer-term value of conservation. There have been discussions by the IUCN over making the sector and the Waza National Park an internationally designated protected area . The Bade-Nguru Wetlands sector is part of the Hadejia-Nguru wetlands , and has an area of 938 km around coordinates 12°40′0″N 10°30′0″E  /  12.66667°N 10.50000°E  / 12.66667; 10.50000 . It lies in

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6262-410: The male breeding plumage. In the typical subspecies, Q. quelea quelea , breeding males have a buff crown, nape and underparts and the black mask extends high up the forehead. In Q. quelea lathamii the mask also extends high up the forehead, but the underparts are mainly white. In Q. quelea aethiopica the mask does not extend far above the bill, and the underparts may have a pink wash. There

6363-530: The meagre information provided by the Diwan . Some of them are noted for having undertaken the pilgrimage to Mecca , others for their piety. In the eighteenth century, Bornu was affected by several long-lasting famines. The Sultanate of Agadez was independently operating the Bilma salt mines by 1750, having been a tributary since 1532. The administrative reforms and military brilliance of Aluma sustained

6464-645: The moth species Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera exempta . The animal's large distribution and population resulted in a conservation status listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List . The red-billed quelea is sometimes kept and bred in captivity by hobbyists. It thrives if kept in large and high cages, with space to fly to minimise the risk of obesity. A sociable bird, the red-billed quelea tolerates mixed-species aviaries. Keeping many individuals mimics its natural occurrence in large flocks. This species withstands frosts, but requires shelter from rain and wind. Affixing hanging branches, such as hawthorn, in

6565-399: The nearest body of water. It is found in wet habitats, congregating at the shores of waterbodies, such as Lake Ngami , during flooding. It needs shrubs, reeds or trees to nest and roost . Red-billed queleas migrate seasonally over long distances in anticipation of the availability of their main natural food source, seeds of annual grasses. The presence of these grass seeds is the result of

6666-409: The nest may be completed in two days. The nest chamber is created in front of the ring. The entrance may be constructed after the egg laying has started, while the male works from the outside. A finished nest looks like a small oval or globular ball of grass, around 18 cm (7 in) high and 16 cm (6 in) wide, with a 2.5 cm (1 in) wide entrance high up one side, sheltered by

6767-582: The northwest. In eastern Africa, the subspecies aethiopica is thought to consist of two sub-populations. One moves from Central Tanzania to southern Somalia, to return to breed in Tanzania in February and March, followed by successive migrations to breed ever further north, the season's last usually occurring in central Kenya during May. The second group moves from northern and central Sudan and central Ethiopia in May and June, to breed in southern Sudan, South Sudan, southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya, moving back north from August to October. In southern Africa,

6868-422: The park sectors only attract a few hundred visitors each year due to the lack of spectacular wildlife. By 2008, staff at the park office in Maiduguri knew little about the park, the lodgings had been abandoned, and tourists visiting the park sectors had to take off-road vehicles and be prepared to camp out. Due to insecurity in the region, the National Parks Service temporarily suspended operations and research in

6969-471: The post-juvenile moult. Young birds change feathers two to three months after hatching, after which the plumage resembles that of non-breeding adults, although the head is grey, the cheeks whitish, and wing coverts and flight feathers have buff margins. At an age of about five months they moult again and their plumage starts to look like that of breeding adults, with a pinkish-purple bill. Different subspecies are distinguished by different colour patterns of

7070-442: The principal trade commodity was slaves. Tribes to the south of Lake Chad were raided as kafirun , and then transported to Zawila in the Fezzan, where the slaves were traded for horses and weapons. The annual number of slaves traded increased from 1000 in the 7th century to 5000 in the 15th. According to Richmond Palmer , it was customary to have "the Mai sitting in a curtained cage called fanadir, dagil, or tatatuna ...

7171-404: The rainy season has already passed and the grass has produced new seeds. After about six weeks, the birds migrate northwards to find a suitable breeding area, nurture a generation, and then repeat this sequence moving further north. Some populations may also move northwards when the rains have started, to eat the remaining ungerminated seeds. In Senegal migration is probably between the southeast and

7272-439: The raising of cattle. Ali Gaji was the first ruler of the empire to assume the title of Caliph. Bornu peaked during the reign of Mai Idris Alooma (c. 1564–1596), reaching the limits of its greatest territorial expansion, gaining control over Hausaland, and the people of Ahir and Tuareg. Peace was made with Bulala, when a demarcation of boundaries was agreed upon with a non-aggression pact . Military innovations included

7373-509: The red-billed quelea is considered a serious agricultural pest in Sub-Saharan Africa . The governments of Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe have regularly made attempts to lessen quelea populations. The most common method to kill members of problematic flocks was by spraying the organophosphate avicide fenthion from the air on breeding colonies and roosts. In Botswana and Zimbabwe, spraying

7474-413: The red-billed quelea is the sister group of a clade that contains both other remaining species of the genus Quelea , namely the cardinal quelea ( Q. cardinalis ) and the red-headed quelea ( Q. erythrops ). The genus belongs to the group of true weavers (subfamily Ploceinae), and is most closely related to the fodies ( Foudia ), a genus of six or seven species that occur on the islands of

7575-597: The region of Lake Chad . Besides its urban elite, it also included a confederation of nomadic peoples who spoke languages of the Teda – Daza group, the Toubou people or Berber people In the 8th century , Wahb ibn Munabbih used Zaghawa to describe the Teda-Tubu group, in the earliest use of the ethnic name. Al-Khwarizmi also mentions the Zaghawa in the 9th century , as did ibn al-Nadim in his Al-Fihrist in

7676-416: The result of other females dumping an egg in a stranger's nest. Both sexes share the incubation of the eggs during the day, but the female alone does so during the cool night, and feeds during the day when air temperatures are high enough to sustain the development of the embryo. The breeding cycle of the red-billed quelea is one of the shortest known in any bird. Incubation takes nine or ten days. After

7777-403: The roosting or nesting site in the evening. Small groups of red-billed queleas often mix with different weaver birds ( Ploceus ) and bishops ( Euplectes ), and in western Africa they may join the Sudan golden sparrow ( Passer luteus ) and various estrildids . Red-billed queleas may also roost together with weavers, estrildids and barn swallows. Their life expectancy is two to three years in

7878-549: The seeds eaten belonged to only three species: African wild rice ( Oryza barthii ), Sorghum purpureosericeum and jungle rice ( Echinochloa colona ). When the supply of these seeds runs out, seeds of cereals such as barley ( Hordeum disticum ), teff ( Eragrostis tef ), sorghum ( Sorghum bicolor ), manna ( Setaria italica ), millet ( Panicum miliaceum ), rice ( Oryza sativa ), wheat ( Triticum ), oats ( Avena aestiva ), as well as buckwheat ( Phagopyrum esculentum ) and sunflower ( Helianthus annuus ) are eaten on

7979-539: The southwest of the Bade and Jakusko Local Government Areas of Yobe State. The sector includes the Dagona Waterfowl Sanctuary, an important resting place for migratory birds. It also includes five forest reserves. Annual rainfall ranges between 200–600 mm, during the period late May–September. With reduced flooding due to upstream dams and perhaps climate change, and with increasing population,

8080-451: The species in colour, based on a live male specimen owned by a Mrs Clayton in Surrey. He called it the "Brazilian sparrow", despite being unsure whether it came from Brazil or Angola . In 1850, Ludwig Reichenbach thought the species was not a true bunting , but rather a weaver, and created the genus name Quelea , as well as the new combination Q. quelea . The white-faced morph

8181-481: The subspecies, as distinguished by different male breeding plumage, is confined to one or more of these geographical regions. In Nigeria, the nominate subspecies generally travels 300–600 km (190–370 mi) southwards during the start of the rains in the north during June and July, when the grass seed germinates, and is no longer eaten by the queleas. When they reach the Benoue River valley, for instance,

8282-463: The surrounding tribes and initiated an extended period of conquest with his cavalry of 41,000. He fought the Bulala for seven years, seven months, and seven days. After dominating the Fezzan, he established a governor at Traghan and delegated military command amongst his sons. As the Sayfawa extended control beyond Kanuri tribal lands, fiefs were granted to military commanders, as cima , or 'master of

8383-600: The title of Shehu within Bornuan society and quickly supplanted the rule of the Mais who became figurehead monarchs. In the year of 1846, the last mai , in league with the Ouaddai Empire , precipitated a civil war, resulting in the death of Mai Ibrahim, the last mai. It was at that point that Kanemi's son, Umar , became Shehu, thus ending one of the longest dynastic reigns in international history. By then, Hausaland in

8484-549: The total population of the subspecies Q. quelea lathamii in October converges on the Zimbabwean Highveld . In November, part of the population migrates to the northwest to northwestern Angola, while the remainder migrates to the southeast to southern Mozambique and eastern South-Africa, but no proof has been found that these migration cohorts are genetically or morphologically divergent. The red-billed quelea

8585-411: The trees during the moonless period each night. The feathers were plucked and the carcasses fried the following morning, dried in the sun, and transported to the city to be sold on the market. The Sara people use standing fishing nets with a very fine mesh, while Masa and Musgum fishermen cast nets over groups of birds. The impact of hunting on the quelea population (about 200 million individuals in

8686-402: The use of mounted Turkish musketeers, slave musketeers, mailed cavalrymen, footmen and feats of military engineering as seen during the siege of the fortified town of Amsaka. This army was organized into an advance guard and a rear reserve while often using shield wall methods as well. The Bornu army was transported via camel or large boats and fed by free and slave women cooks, and often employed

8787-550: The weaver family, Ploceidae , native to Sub-Saharan Africa . It was named by Linnaeus in 1758, who considered it a bunting , but Ludwig Reichenbach assigned it in 1850 to the new genus Quelea . Three subspecies are recognised, with Quelea quelea quelea occurring roughly from Senegal to Chad, Q. q. aethiopica from Sudan to Somalia and Tanzania, and Q. q. lathamii from Gabon to Mozambique and South Africa. Non-breeding birds have light underparts, striped brown upper parts, yellow-edged flight feathers and

8888-560: The west were able to make major inroads into Bornu during the Fulani War . By the early 19th century, Kanem–Bornu was clearly an empire in decline, and in 1808 Fulani warriors conquered Ngazargamu . Usman dan Fodio led the Fulani thrust and proclaimed a jihad (holy war) on the irreligious Muslims of the area. His campaign eventually affected Kanem–Bornu and inspired a trend toward Islamic orthodoxy. Muhammad al-Amin al-Kanemi , who

8989-594: The west, was lost to the Sokoto Caliphate , while the east and north were lost to the Wadai Empire . Although the dynasty ended, the kingdom of Kanem–Bornu survived. Umar eschewed the title mai for the simpler designation shehu (from the Arabic shaykh ), could not match his father's vitality, and gradually allowed the kingdom to be ruled by advisers ( wazirs ). Bornu began a further decline as

9090-543: The western Indian Ocean . These two genera are in turn the sister clade to the Asian species of the genus Ploceus . The following tree represents current insight of the relationships between the species of Quelea , and their closest relatives. Q. quelea Q. cardinalis Q. erythrops genus Foudia Asian species of the genus Ploceus Interbreeding between red-billed and red-headed queleas has been observed in captivity. The red-billed quelea

9191-562: The whole of Borno, Sanda Kyarimi reunited under his rule a territory which had been divided since 1902. For 35 years two Shehus had co-existed." In 1961, the Northern Cameroons voted to join Nigeria, effectively rejoining the territories of the kingdom of Bornu. The lands of the Bornu state were thus absorbed into the new Northern Nigeria Protectorate , in the sphere of the British Empire , and eventually became part of

9292-417: The whydah has a whitish brow between a black stripe through the eye and a black stripe above. [REDACTED] Flying flocks make a distinct sound due to the many wing beats. After arriving at the roost or nest site, birds keep moving around and make a lot of noise for about half an hour before settling in. Both males and females call. The male sings in short bursts, starting with some chatter, followed by

9393-581: The wild, but one captive bird lived for eighteen years. The red-billed quelea needs 300–800 mm (12–31 in) of precipitation to breed, with nest building usually commencing four to nine weeks after the onset of the rains. Nests are usually built in stands of thorny trees such as umbrella thorn acacia ( Vachellia tortilis ), blackthorn ( Senegalia mellifera ) and sicklebush ( Dichrostachys cinerea ), but sometimes in sugar cane fields or reeds. Colonies can consist of millions of nests, in densities of 30,000 per ha (12,000 per acre). Over 6000 nests in

9494-432: Was Mānān . Their king was considered divine, believing he could "bring life and death, sickness and health". Wealth was measured in livestock , sheep, cattle, camels and horses. From al-Bakri in the 11th century onwards, the kingdom is referred to as Kanem . In the 12th century Muhammad al-Idrisi described Mānān as "a small town without industry of any sort and little commerce". Ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi describes Mānān as

9595-561: Was also executed from ground vehicles and manually. Kenya and South Africa regularly used fire-bombs. Attempts during the 1950s and '60s to eradicate populations, at least regionally, failed. Consequently, management is at present directed at removing those congregations that are likely to attack vulnerable fields. In eastern and southern Africa, the control of quelea is often coordinated by the Desert Locust Control Organization for Eastern Africa (DLCO-EA) and

9696-618: Was collected in the neighbouring Sennar province in today's Sudan. "Red-billed quelea" has been designated the official name by the International Ornithological Committee (IOC). Other names in English include black-faced dioch, cardinal, common dioch, Latham's weaver-bird, pink-billed weaver, quelea finch, quelea weaver, red-billed dioch, red-billed weaver, Russ' weaver, South-African dioch, Sudan dioch and Uganda dioch. Based on recent DNA analysis ,

9797-495: Was corrected to Africa in the 12th edition of Systema Naturae of 1766, and Brisson was cited . Brisson mentions that the bird originates from Senegal, where it had been collected by Michel Adanson during his 1748-1752 expedition. He called the bird Moineau à bec rouge du Senegal in French and Passer senegalensis erythrorynchos in Latin, both meaning "red-billed Senegalese sparrow". Also in 1766, George Edwards illustrated

9898-669: Was described as a separate species, Q. russii by Otto Finsch in 1877 and named after the aviculturist Karl Russ . Three subspecies are recognised. In the field, these are distinguished by differences in male breeding plumage. Formerly, two other subspecies have been described. Q. quelea spoliator was described by Phillip Clancey in 1960 on the basis of more greyish nonbreeding plumage of populations of wetter habitats of northeastern South Africa, Eswatini and southern Mozambique. However, further analysis indicated no clear distinction in plumage between it and Q. quelea lathamii , with no evidence of genetic isolation. Hence it

9999-412: Was introduced to the island of Réunion in 2000. Occasionally, it can be found as high as 3,000 m (9,800 ft) above sea-level, but mostly resides below 1,500 m (4,900 ft). It visits agricultural areas, where it feeds on cereal crops, although it is thought to prefer seeds of wild annual grasses. It needs to drink daily and can only be found within about 30 km (19 mi) distance of

10100-461: Was located in the present countries of Chad, Nigeria and Libya . At its height, it encompassed an area covering not only most of Chad but also parts of southern Libya ( Fezzan ) and eastern Niger , northeastern Nigeria and northern Cameroon . The Bornu Empire (1380s–1893) was a state in what is now northeastern Nigeria, in time becoming even larger than Kanem, incorporating areas that are today parts of Chad, Niger and Cameroon. The early history of

10201-464: Was of mixed Kanuri and Shuwa Arab heritage from Fezzan contested the Fulani incursions into Bornu. Al-Kanemi was a Muslim scholar who had put together an alliance of mostly Shuwa Arabs , and Kanembu within the region. He eventually built in 1814 a capital at Kukawa (in present-day Nigeria). After the creation of his capital at Kukawa, Al-Kanemi quickly amassed a large following within Bornu and adopted

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