[3] The Mauritius fody was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae.

[5] Gmelin based his account on a hand-colour engraving by François-Nicolas Martinet that depicted both the male and female birds.

[6] The Mauritius fody is now one of eight species placed in the genus Foudia that was introduced in 1850 by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach.

Breeding males are olive brown with a red head, breast and rump patch and black lores.

Stands of Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) have replaced native vegetation and now provide protection against predators.

[10] The bird is a weaver, the male and female cooperating to weave each nest, from material such as grass, moss and small twigs.

[9] The population has increased recently due to conservation programs establishing sub-populations on offshore islands.