Philetairus socius
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The sociable weaver (Philetairus socius) is a species of bird in the weaver family, endemic to Southern Africa. It is the only species in its genus Philetairus. It is found in South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana, but its range is centered within the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. The species builds large, compound, community nests, a rarity among birds. These nests are perhaps the most spectacular structure built by any bird.
The sociable weaver was first described by ornithologist John Latham in 1790. Alternative names include the common social weaver, common social-weaver, and social weaver. Formerly, four subspecies were recognised, but the species is now considered monotypic. The sociable weaver is the only extant species in the genus Philetairus.
Based on a 2017 DNA-analysis, P. socius belongs to the group of sparrow weavers (subfamily Plocepasserinae) and is most related to the genus Pseudonigrita. These two genera are the sister group of the genus Plocepasser. The most basic genus of the subfamily is Sporopipes. Provided that genera are correct clades, the following tree expresses current insights.
Measuring... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Namib-Naukluft National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 3 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Basel Zoo | 🇨🇭 Switzerland |
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Social Weaver sighting in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park on a given day, based on 383 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 5th most-seen of the 122 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 90% of wildlife watchers report a Social Weaver in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park on a given day, against about 40% in August, the lowest month. That is one of Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park's driest months, with about 5 mm of rain against 40 mm in January. May has too few records to rate.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Social Weaver sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Social Weaver sightings, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park has the highest daily chance: about 70%. Next come Namib-Naukluft National Park (Namibia, about 30%) and Etosha National Park (Namibia, about 20%).
Same family: Passeridae
The closest relatives of the Social Weaver that you can see in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (family Passeridae, Old World Sparrows) are White-browed Sparrow-Weaver (about 70%), Cape Sparrow (about 50%) and Southern Gray-headed Sparrow (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Social Weaver is recorded against all the birds logged in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (383 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
