Bishops, Weavers and Quelea in Zimbabwean Folklore

The gregarious nature, colours, and nest-building prowess of the bishops, weavers and quelea have attracted the particular attention of Ndebele and Kalanga tribespeople. Indeed, it is commonly believed to be a good omen if any of the weaver species choose to build their basket-like nests in colonies nearby or above a homestead or kraal. This occurrence is said to be a sign of enduring peace and unity to the home, however none of these nests should be disturbed, as this would almost certainly result in future discord.

It is also believed that these birds possess the ability to predict good rains, and should any of the taxa mentioned build a large number of nests in a single locality, an excellent rainy season will follow. In addition, floods should be expected if a number of weaver nests are located exceptionally high up in a tree above a river.

While the Ndebele do not generally differentiate between the bishops, quelea and weavers (grouping all as iNthaka), in some areas they do have specific names for some weaver taxa. The Shona and some smaller tribes do qualify quelea and bishops as distinct from the weavers and the baTonga alone name the male and female (along with non-breeding males) separately. Flocks of quelea are however named only as a large single entity by the Ndebele, who believe that n’angas purposefully employ sparrowhawks to disperse these large flocks (umDumanyoni), which may otherwise decimate grain crops and result in a poor harvest.

Local names for weavers in Zimbabwe:

Jesa, Muguobhani – Shona (all dialects)
iNthaka – Ndebele
Manchoo – baTonga

Local names for quelea and/or bishops in Zimbabwe:

Nyamafuro (bishop), Ngoza, Chimokoto (quelea) – Shona (all dialects)
Chifada (bishop), Kandonga (quelea) – Nambya
Tingozi (quelea) – Shangaan
(bishop male) Chamsankanana / (bishop female) Tuyonimbile – baTonga
umUndumo, umDumanyoni (quelea flock) – Ndebele

A Southern Masked Weaver Ploceus velatus breeding male, is pictured below left with typical nest and a Red-billed Quelea quelea non-breeding male (or female) is pictured below right.