The Cape weaver (Ploceus capensis) is a stocky, 17 cm, yellow-and-orange weaver bird endemic to South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini, where it inhabits open grassland, fynbos, coastal thicket, and farmland near water. It is omnivorous, feeding on seeds, fruit, nectar, and insects. It functions as a primary pollinator of aloes across its range and is the main native pollinator of Strelitzia reginae (bird-of-paradise): birds perch on the spathe, triggering the third petal to open and deposit pollen on their feet as they probe for nectar. In gardens, it is most likely to appear where aloes, red-hot pokers, or bird-of-paradise are in bloom.

Plants this species pollinates · 1

Nectar plants · 2

Endemic to southern Africa: South Africa (from the Northern Cape south to the Cape of Good Hope and east to KwaZulu-Natal and inland toward Bloemfontein), Lesotho, and Eswatini. Absent from the Kalahari Desert and dense forest. Stronghold is the Western Cape.