Straw-tailed Whydah

Straw-tailed Whydah

Vidua fischeri

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Awash National Park

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%

6 Verified sightings at Awash National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,109 In all 12 parks
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Straw-tailed Whydah

The straw-tailed whydah (Vidua fischeri) is a species of bird in the family Viduidae. It is found in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Its natural habitat is dry savanna. Like all other whydah species, the straw-tailed whydah is a brood parasite. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:16

Ethiopia · 2015

© Peter Boesman · XC300883 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Song0:50

Kenya · 2020

© James Bradley · XC536669 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:20

Kenya · 2021

© isaac kilusu · XC613504 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
2 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
3 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
4 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
5 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
6 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
7 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
<5%
8 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
9 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
10 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
11 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
12 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Straw-tailed Whydah in Awash National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Straw-tailed Whydah sighting in Awash National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 199th most-seen of the 217 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Straw-tailed Whydah in Awash National Park?

August

In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Straw-tailed Whydah in Awash National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, June–July and November–January, the lowest months. That is one of Awash National Park's wettest months, with about 85 mm of rain against 10 mm in January. February–March, May and September have too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Straw-tailed Whydah?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Straw-tailed Whydah sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Awash National Park the best place to see a Straw-tailed Whydah?

7th of 12

Of the 12 parks where we can rate Straw-tailed Whydah sightings, Awash National Park ranks 7th at under 5%. The best odds are in Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 20%), Mkomazi National Park (Tanzania, about 20%) and Serengeti National Park (Tanzania, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Straw-tailed Whydah live in Awash National Park?

Same genus: Vidua

The closest relatives of the Straw-tailed Whydah that you can see in Awash National Park (genus Vidua, Indigobirds and Whydahs) are Long-tailed Paradise Whydah (about 20%) and Pin-tailed Whydah (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Straw-tailed Whydah sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Straw-tailed Whydah is recorded against all the birds logged in Awash National Park (6 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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