Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu
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Order: Passeriformes
Family: Estrildidae

[Photo] Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu (Uraeginthus bengalus) male photographed in Nanyuki, Kenya. Date: 26 December 2005. Author: Christiaan Kooyman. Released into the public domain by the author. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Red-cheeked_Cordon-bleu.jpg

The Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu, Uraeginthus bengalus is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in drier regions of tropical sub- Saharan Africa. It also can be found in USA. Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 7,700,000 km².

Habitat
The Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu is a small gregarious bird which feeds mainly on grain and other seeds. It is frequently seen at open dry grassland and savanna habitats as well as around human habitation. The nest is a large domed grass structure with a side entrance in a tree, bush or thatch into which 4-5 white eggs are laid.

Appearance
The Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu is 12cm in length. The adult male has uniformly brown upperparts, pale blue breast, flanks and tail and a yellow belly. There is a red patch on each cheek. It has a piping tsee-tsee call which is a familiar African sound. The song is a wit-sit-diddley-diddley-ee-ee.

Females are similar but duller, and lack the cheek spot. Immature birds are like the female, but with blue restricted to the face and throat.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-cheeked_Cordon-bleu

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