Much less common in Namibia than the Fan-tailed Widowbird (Red-shouldered Widow) Euplectes axillaris, this species was reported at below 10% during the SABAP1 atlas period and has an area of occupancy of 4,400 km2. It can be found in moist grassland, but is more likely to occur in rank growth on the fringes of open grassland near water, and the seasonally inundated floodplains such as those of the Chobe River. It is relatively common in the floodplain of the Okavango River within the Mahango area of the Bwabwata National Park and an uncommon resident near Katimo Mulilo in the Zambezi region.