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Passer griseus
An African species from Sparrow family (Passeridae). Very sparrow-like, adult with grey head, brown-rufous back and black bill without bib.
The Northern Grey-headed Sparrow is a common Afrotropical species, and it occupies a wide range of open habitats - in a similar fashion like House sparrow in Europe. Here, observed on shores of lake Awassa in Ethiopia, close to the town o the same name.
Lake Awassa (or Hawassa) is a part of main Ethiopian Rift Valley series of lakes, situated at some 1700 m of altitude. Like most of Rift lakes in Ethiopian highlands, this is an endorreic lake (landlocked mass of water having no outlet and not connected to the sea), and as such surrounded by marshes that regulate its levels through evaporation. Because of marshes and its forested shores, the lake is known as birdwatcher's paradise - very rich with various waders. Unfortunately, many of these marshes, or at least those of an easy access to visitors are very polluted by plastic garbage - mainly plastic bottles and bags...
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