Chestnut-breasted Munia

Chestnut-breasted Munia

Lonchura castaneothorax

Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic

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

In 3 days <5%

9 Verified sightings at Blue Mountains National Park From 2019 to 2026
343 In all 4 parks
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Chestnut-breasted Munia

The chestnut-breasted mannikin (Lonchura castaneothorax), also known as the chestnut-breasted munia or bully bird (in Australia), is a small brown-backed munia with a black face and greyish crown and nape. It has a broad ferruginous breast bar above a white belly. The species' natural range includes Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. It has also been introduced to French Polynesia and New Caledonia.

The chestnut-breasted mannikin has a total of six subspecies and seven forms. Not recognized as a valid subspecies by some authorities. Identification: Richer breast and cream ground color to belly and flanks. Identification: Distinctive black head with faint scalloping. Female is more noticeable than the male.

Identification: Brown scallops on the flanks and paler to straw on the upper tail-coverts. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:15

Australia · 2023

© nick talbot · XC829618 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:08

Australia · 2022

© James Lambert · XC789482 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:22

Australia · 2020

© Marc Anderson · XC522031 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Daintree National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~20%
2 Kakadu National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
3 Lamington National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
4 Blue Mountains National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Brisbane 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 San Diego Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 Australia Zoo 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
3 Territory Wildlife Park 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
4 Taronga Zoo 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
5 Sea Life Sydney Aquarium 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
6 Wild Life Sydney 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Chestnut-breasted Munia in Blue Mountains National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-breasted Munia sighting in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 184th most-seen of the 196 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Chestnut-breasted Munia in Blue Mountains National Park?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-breasted Munia in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Chestnut-breasted Munia?

Between 2 and 5 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chestnut-breasted Munia sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Blue Mountains National Park the best place to see a Chestnut-breasted Munia?

4th of 4

Of the 4 parks where we can rate Chestnut-breasted Munia sightings, Blue Mountains National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Daintree National Park (Australia, about 20%), Kakadu National Park (Australia, under 5%) and Lamington National Park (Australia, under 5%).

Where does the Chestnut-breasted Munia sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Chestnut-breasted Munia is recorded against all the birds logged in Blue Mountains National Park (9 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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