Ptilonorhynchus violaceus
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The satin bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus) is a species of passerine bird in the bowerbird family Ptilonorhynchidae that is endemic to eastern Australia. It is the only species placed in the genus Ptilonorhynchus. The satin bowerbird was formally described in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Vieillot. He placed it with the choughs in the genus Pyrrhocorax and coined the binomial name Pyrrhocorax violaceus. Vieillot specified the type locality as "Nouvelle-Hollande" which is taken to be Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The satin bowerbird is now the only species placed in the genus Ptilonorhynchus that was introduced in 1820 by German naturalist Heinrich Kuhl. He specified the type species as Ptilonorhynchus holosericeus, which is a junior synonym of Vieillot's Pyrrhocorax violaceus. The genus name Ptilonorhynchus combines the Ancient Greek πτιλον/ptilon meaning "feather" with ῥυγχος/rhunkhos meaning "bill". The specific epithet violaceus is Latin meaning "violet-coloured".
A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2020 found that the genus Ptilonorhynchus was sister to the genus Chlamydera. Two subspecies are recognised: P. v. violaceus (Vieillot,... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Booderee National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Healesville Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Melbourne Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Adelaide Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Australian Reptile Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Ipswich Nature Centre | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Sea Life Sydney Aquarium | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Wild Life Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Birdworld Kuranda | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Kuranda Koala Gardens | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Ranger Red’s Zoo & Conservation Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 13 | Wildlife Habitat Port Douglas | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Satin Bowerbird sighting in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 3,228 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 12th most-seen of the 196 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September and November–December
In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Satin Bowerbird in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, against about 40% in January–May and July, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Satin Bowerbird sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Satin Bowerbird sightings, Blue Mountains National Park ranks 2nd at about 50%. The best odds are in Lamington National Park (Australia, about 80%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Satin Bowerbird that you can see in Blue Mountains National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Eastern Spinebill (about 70%), Red Wattlebird (about 60%) and Australian Magpie (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Satin Bowerbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Blue Mountains National Park (3,228 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.
