Mauritius fody as plantations. Stands of Japanese cedar ("Cryptomeria japonica") have replaced native vegetation and now provide protection against predators. It feeds on insects like grasshoppers, beetle larvae, caterpillars, and also spiders. Berries are eaten regularly by some individuals. It feeds on nectar regularly, using its specialised brush-tipped tongue. The bird is a weaver, the male and female cooperating to weave each nest, from material like grass, moss and small twigs. The Mauritius fody is threatened by the loss of its habitat and predation from introduced predators. Beginning in the 1970s much of its habitat was lost when the land was cleared
Red fody "Cardinalis Madagascariensis". Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his "Systema Naturae" for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the red fody. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name "Loxia madagascariensis" and cited Brisson's work. This species is now placed in the genus "Foudia" that was introduced by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach in 1850. The type species was subsequently