About Zosterops pallidus Swainson, 1838
This species, Zosterops pallidus Swainson, 1838, has sexes that are identical in appearance, and adults measure 10–13 cm from the tip of the bill to the tip of the tail. Its upperparts are covered in pale olive green plumage, and it has a yellow throat and a yellow supraloral stripe. A tawny buff tone on the flanks and sides of the breast is regionally diagnostic for the species. The plumage of the lore and all bare body parts are black. Juvenile plumage is a paler version of adult plumage, and the characteristic white eye-rings develop during the juvenile’s second month of life. This species reaches its highest population densities in the catchment areas of the Orange and Vaal Rivers, where it is locally very abundant. It also occurs in more isolated locations across the Nama Karoo, Namaqualand, the Namib, the Namibian escarpment, the uplands of Damaraland, and mopane-veld in the far north of its range. In dry regions, it associates with vegetation growing along the edges of periodically dry streambeds. No extensive seasonal or migratory movements have been recorded for this species. It forages in both native and introduced willows (Salix spp.), currant-rhus (Searsia spp.), thorn trees (Acacia) and reeds (Phragmites). It is commonly found in human-made gardens, parks and plantations, where it uses any available vegetation.
