The LONG-TAILED WIDOW BIRD (_Chera caffra_), the largest of all the South
African species, is remarkable for the peculiar construction of its tail,
formed of sixteen imbricated feathers of great but unequal length. The
plumage is of a velvety black, scarlet upon the shoulders, the latter
colour being divided from the wing by a pure white line; the wings are
black, the feathers being bordered with light yellow; the beak and feet
are of a pale brownish yellow. In the coat of the female all the feathers
are bordered with a yellow margin, only the middle being black; the lower
portion of the body is greyish yellow; the throat, eyebrows, and under
tail-covers are white. The length of this large bird is not less than
twenty and a half inches, the longest tail-feathers measuring fifteen and
a half inches, and the wing five and a half inches.
The Long-tailed Widow Bird is social in its habits, and must certainly
be reckoned amongst the races that are polygamists, as it is by no means
uncommon to see flocks containing about eighty females to not more than
ten or fifteen males. As with our Barn-door Fowls, some of the old
females acquire the plumage of the male. Marshes and bogs afford the
breeding-places preferred by this species. The nest, which is round, is
generally suspended from a reed, and formed of some green plant, the
entrance to the interior being effected by means of a long passage,
opening on the side that is nearest to the water. Travellers assure us
that the male may be caught with the hand during windy weather, as its
long tail renders escape by flight impossible.
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The COCK-TAILED WIDOW BIRDS (_Steganura_) are found throughout the whole
of Central Africa, and have been described as two distinct species,
resembling each other in the shape of their beak, the height of which
equals its length; the ridge is arched, and joined at a sharp angle with
the forehead. When in nuptial plumage the tail of the male seems to
consist of only the middle feathers, which are much longer than those at
the sides, and very various in their appearance; the centre feathers are
bent like those in the tail of a Cock, and of great length and breadth,
narrowing somewhat towards the tips.