Nest structures are widespread across animals and yet are one of the most understudied components of avian life history. Some of the most remarkable examples of elaborate nest design are within the Weaverbirds (Ploceidae), an Old World family of Passerine birds containing 117 species in 17 genera, making them an ideal model system for studying evolutionary patterns of biodiversity. While it is known that each species constructs a uniquely designed nest, the evolutionary factors that influence design are unknown. Previous work on Weaverbird nests has focused on qualitative descriptions of nest design and shape within the subfamily Ploceinae, and no study to date has attempted to include fine-scaled nest character data using continuous and meristic measures of nest design within a phylogenetic framework. For this study we collected data for 30 morphological variables related to nest size, shape and material composition from 576 nest specimens housed in several natural history collections in North America and Europe (NHM, WFVZ, ZMB). Our sampling includes representatives from 82 species in 13 genera, representing over 70% of the taxonomic diversity across the Ploceidae. Comparative statistics have resulted in the identification of 9 highly informative nest character traits that vary significantly between species including overall nest volume, egg chamber length, entrance diameter size, and entrance tube length. Currently our research involves taking these initial results and placing them within a phylogenetic context by combining our nest character data with existing DNA sequence data for the Ploceidae to perform ancestral state reconstruction and trait-dependent diversification analyses.