Aviceda leuphotes
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
The black baza (Aviceda leuphotes) is a small bird of prey found in the forests of Northeast India, the eastern Himalayas, China and Southeast Asia. Many populations are migratory, including those in the Indian region, which winter in the south of the Peninsula and Sri Lanka. Black bazas have short, stout legs and feet with strong talons, and a prominent crest. They are found in dense forest, often in small groups, and can often be found perched on bare branches of tall trees rising above the forest canopy.
The bird was first described based on a specimen from Pondicherry under the name of Falco leuphotes. Several geographic races have been described including wolfei which is based on a single specimen from Sichuan and may belong to the nominate subspecies. The named forms include the following, but they have been questioned and further study has been called for.
It is said to breed in Burma and... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 3 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 6 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 7 | Khao Sok National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 8 | Khao Luang National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 9 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black Baza sighting in Chitwan National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 349th most-seen of the 367 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black Baza in Chitwan National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black Baza sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Black Baza sightings, Chitwan National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Periyar National Park (India, about 10%), Kaeng Krachan National Park (Thailand, under 5%) and Doi Inthanon National Park (Thailand, under 5%).
Same family: Accipitridae
The closest relatives of the Black Baza that you can see in Chitwan National Park (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Crested Serpent Eagle (about 30%), Oriental Honey-buzzard (about 30%) and Gray-headed Fish-Eagle (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black Baza is recorded against all the birds logged in Chitwan National Park (5 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.
