Turdoides caudata
Silhouette: Jiekun He · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The common babbler (Argya caudata) is a member of the family of Leiothrichidae. They are found in dry open scrub country mainly in India. Two populations are recognized as subspecies and the populations to the west of the Indus river system are now usually treated as a separate species, the Afghan babbler (Turdoides huttoni). The species is distinctly long-tailed, slim with an overall brown or greyish colour, streaked on the upper plumage and having a distinctive whitish throat.
The common babbler was formerly placed in the genus Turdoides but following the publication of a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study in 2018, it was moved to the resurrected genus Argya. This small, slim babbler with a long tail is buff to grey above with dark streaks. The underside is unstreaked and paler, the throat being nearly whitish.
The species was originally described as Crateropus caudatus before it was moved to the genus Argya and still later to Turdoides. The species ending was, however, retained in these new combinations but the corrected feminine form caudata matches the Latin gender of the genus Turdoides.
The common babbler group includes eclipes (Hume,... Wikipedia →
Recording0:19
India · 2024
© Tarun Meena · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0
Recording0:11
India · 2023
© Malaika Mathew Chawla · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Gir National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Common Babbler sighting in Bandhavgarh National Park on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 207th most-seen of the 241 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Babbler in Bandhavgarh National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to July, the lowest months. That is one of Bandhavgarh National Park's wettest months, with about 400 mm of rain against almost none in November.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Babbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
6th of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Common Babbler sightings, Bandhavgarh National Park ranks 6th at under 5%. The best odds are in Keoladeo National Park (India, about 30%), Ranthambore National Park (India, about 20%) and Gir National Park (India, about 10%).
Same genus: Turdoides
The closest relatives of the Common Babbler that you can see in Bandhavgarh National Park (genus Turdoides, Turdoides Babblers) are Jungle Babbler (about 70%) and Large Grey Babbler (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Babbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Bandhavgarh National Park (12 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.
