The scaly-breasted munia is a small, sociable bird with distinctive cinnamon and brown plumage and a yellow-brown tail, known for the scale-like pattern on its white underside created by brown feather edges. It feeds mainly on seeds, foraging both on the ground and directly from plants like rice, and builds dome-shaped nests of grass and leaves to hold four to seven eggs which hatch within 15-18 days.

1. The scaly-breasted
munia (Lonchura
punctulata)

3. The scaly-breasted munia (Lonchura
punctulata), also known as the
nutmeg mannikin or spice finch, is a
small bird with a very distinctive
appearance. It has a bright
cinnamon head and neck, with duller
brown plumage on the back and
wings

5. The underside of the scaly-breasted
munia is mainly white, although each
feather on the breast has a brown
edge, creating the scale-like pattern
for which this species is named . The
pointed tail is a yellowish-brown .
Male and female scaly-breasted
munias are similar in appearance .

8. Being a highly sociable bird, the
scaly-breasted munia is usually
found in small groups. The diet of
the scaly-breasted munia comprises
mainly seeds, and this species
spends much of its time foraging off
the ground. It also takes seeds
directly from plants such as rice
during the harvest season, when the
kernels are maturing

12. Typically, Lonchura species build
dome-shaped nests . Pairs of scaly-
breasted munias will build nests from
grass, straw and bamboo leaves. The
nests can be found in bushes and
usually contain four to seven eggs .
Species within the Lonchura genus
usually incubate their eggs for 15 to 18
days, and once hatched, the chicks
grow rapidly and are fully independent
within a few months .