Red Bishop
Euplectes orix (Linnaeus, 1758)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Southern red bishop (Euplectes orix), Zambezi River, Zimbabwe
Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 320 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The southern red bishop or red bishop (Euplectes orix) is a small passerine bird belonging to the bishop and widowbird genus Euplectes in the weaver family, the Ploceidae. It is common in wetlands and grassland in Africa south of the Equator. North of the Equator, it is replaced by the northern red bishop or orange bishop (E. franciscanus) which was formerly regarded as a subspecies of this species.
Wikipedia contributors, Southern red bishop; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:00:31.079493+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Euplectes orix (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- Red Bishop
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Ploceidae
- Genus
- Euplectes
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyPloceidae Sundevall, 1836
- genusEuplectes Swainson, 1829
- speciesEuplectes orix (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Euplectes. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Red-collared WidowbirdEuplectes ardens (Boddaert, 1783) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black BishopEuplectes gierowii Cabanis, 1880 | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-winged Red BishopEuplectes hordeaceus (Linnaeus, 1758) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Montane WidowbirdEuplectes psammacromius (Reichenow, 1900) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Euplectes macroura (Gmelin, 1789) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Long-tailed WidowbirdEuplectes progne (Boddaert, 1783) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Zanzibar Red BishopEuplectes nigroventris Cassin, 1848 | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-winged WidowbirdEuplectes albonotatus (Cassin, 1848) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yellow BishopEuplectes capensis (Linnaeus, 1766) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Northern Red BishopEuplectes franciscanus (Isert, 1789) | PloceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=179634 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:6HCYG. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.