Laniarius major
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The tropical boubou or bell shrike (Laniarius aethiopicus) is a medium-sized passerine bird of sub-Saharan Africa. This very diverse "species" with its numerous subspecies and morphs has since long posed a taxonomic problem, and recent research suggests it is a cryptic species complex that has now been split into several species.
The tropical boubou is fairly large for its family (bushshrikes), measuring 23–25 cm in length. Its weight can vary between about 38-70 g, but typically adults weigh between 50 and 60 g. Females are on average a bit smaller than males, but individual variation is so large that for most practical purposes the sexes seem to be of identical size. The wing measures about 98 mm on average (between 85 and 110), the tail is a mere two millimetres longer both on average and as regards variation. The tarsus is 29–37 mm long, 33 mm on average, while the bill's exposed culmen measures a little over 20 mm in some populations and as much as 25 mm in others. Unlike the other measurements where there is mostly individual variation, the bill length might distinctly vary between subspecies.
Not only are males and females the same size, they have identical... Wikipedia →
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Boubou sighting in Arusha National Park on a given day, based on 539 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 2nd most-seen of the 373 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and April
In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Boubou in Arusha National Park on a given day, against about 40% in May, the lowest month. Those are among Arusha National Park's wettest months, with about 330 mm of rain a month against 65 mm in September.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Tropical Boubou sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 34 parks where we can rate Tropical Boubou sightings, Arusha National Park has the highest daily chance: about 70%. Next come Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 60%) and Aberdare National Park (Kenya, about 60%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Tropical Boubou is recorded against all the birds logged in Arusha National Park (539 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.
