Cabanis's Greenbul

Cabanis's Greenbul

Phyllastrephus cabanisi

Silhouette: PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Arusha National Park

In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%

118 Verified sightings at Arusha National Park From 2019 to 2026
523 In all 6 parks
September Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Cabanis's Greenbul

Cabanis's greenbul (Phyllastrephus cabanisi), also known as Cabanis's bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in east-central and south-central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland.

Cabanis's greenbul was formally described in 1880 by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis under the binomial name Trichophorus flaveolus based on a specimen that had been collected in Angola. Unfortunately, the scientific name was pre-occupied by Trichophorus flaveolus that had been introduced by John Gould in 1836 for the white-throated bulbul, now Alophoixus flaveolus. In 1882 the English ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe proposed the replacement name, Criniger cabanisi, with the specific epithet chosen to honour Cabanis who had first described the species. Cabanis's greenbul is now one of 20 greenbuls placed in the genus Phyllastrephus that was introduced in 1832 by William Swainson. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek φυλλον/phullon meaning "leaf" with στρεφω/strephō meaning... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song and call0:34

Kenya · 2024

© Peter Boesman · XC948333 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Duet0:14

Zambia · 2023

© Dries Van de Loock · XC854349 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:49

Zambia · 2026

© Magnus Wadstein · XC1101940 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
2 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
3 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~10%
4 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
5 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
6 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nairobi 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Cabanis's Greenbul in Arusha National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Cabanis's Greenbul sighting in Arusha National Park on a given day, based on 118 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 97th most-seen of the 373 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Cabanis's Greenbul in Arusha National Park?

September

In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Cabanis's Greenbul in Arusha National Park on a given day, against about 10% in June–July and December, the lowest months. That is one of Arusha National Park's driest months, with about 65 mm of rain against 440 mm in April.

What time of day is best to see a Cabanis's Greenbul?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cabanis's Greenbul sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Arusha National Park the best place to see a Cabanis's Greenbul?

Yes

Of the 6 parks where we can rate Cabanis's Greenbul sightings, Arusha National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Uganda, about 10%) and Nyungwe National Park (Rwanda, about 10%).

Where does the Cabanis's Greenbul sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Cabanis's Greenbul is recorded against all the birds logged in Arusha National Park (118 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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