Seychelles fody juvenile resembles the female and juvenile red fody ("Foudia madagascariensis"), but can be distinguished by having upper parts with less streaking. The Seychelles fody feeds mainly on insects and other small arthropods, as well as eating fruit, nectar and seeds. It has been known to feed on the eggs of seabirds. The diet includes bugs, beetles, ants and spiders. On Cousin, this bird has a clearly defined breeding season, between May and September, after which period it moults. On some other islands it seems to breed throughout the year. It shares the same habitat in the Seychelles with a related
Réunion fody were bright red. Back and tail were brown. The belly was pale. The head of the females and the juvenile males was brown. Neck and wings were red. The throat was pale brown. The Réunion fody was once described as abundant and as pest that destroyed entire crops. It was last seen shortly after 1672. The reason for its extinction might be the predation by rats. A type of fody on Réunion was previously mentioned as "Foudia bruante" by Philipp Ludwig Statius Müller in the work "Planches Enluminées" in 1776. But after a hypothesis by Cheke and Hume "Foudia bruante"