Lamprotornis mevesii
Silhouette: Rafael Maia · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Meves's starling (Lamprotornis mevesii), also Meves's glossy starling and Long-tailed starling, is a species of starling in the genus Lamprotornis. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Its English and Latin names commemorate the German ornithologist Friedrich Wilhelm Meves. It is 30–36 cm long, with a very long tail; in dull light coloured black, but in bright light, with moderate to intensely strong iridescent gloss. It can be distinguished from the similar Burchell's starling by its longer tail with strongly graduated feathers (the central pair of tail feathers the longest, with subsequent pairs of feathers shorter to the outermost), and from other long-tailed species of Lamprotornis by its dark eyes.
Three subspecies are accepted: Lamprotornis mevesii benguelensis Shelley, 1906 — southwestern Angola (Angola Escarpment). Duller and browner, less glossy on the body and tail than the other subspecies. Lamprotornis mevesii violacior Clancey, 1973 — northern Namibia and south-central Angola. Dark, violet-purple glossed.
Lamprotornis mevesii mevesii (Wahlberg, 1856) — southeasternmost Angola, northeastern Namibia (Caprivi Strip), Botswana, east to southeastern Zambia, southern Malawi, and northeastern South Africa. Intensely green-and-blue glossed, with some bronze gloss on the flanks.
Some authorities have treated the three as separate species, but this is not widely followed. It is typically found in small flocks in mopane woodland, usually along major river basins, and often in areas which are flooded in the rainy season. The breeding season lasts from September to May, with peak nesting activity in February to March. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 2 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 3 | South Luangwa National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 4 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Lower Zambezi National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 6 | Moremi Game Reserve | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 7 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 8 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 9 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 10 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avifauna | 🇪🇸 Spain |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Meves's Glossy-starling sighting in Chobe National Park on a given day, based on 200 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 101st most-seen of the 373 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and December
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Meves's Glossy-starling in Chobe National Park on a given day, against about 10% in January–February and April–November, the lowest months. Those are among Chobe National Park's wettest months, with about 90 mm of rain a month against almost none in May.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Meves's Glossy-starling sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
8th of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Meves's Glossy-starling sightings, Chobe National Park ranks 8th at about 10%. The best odds are in Liwonde National Park (Malawi, about 80%), Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 80%) and South Luangwa National Park (Zambia, about 80%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Lamprotornis
The closest relatives of the Meves's Glossy-starling that you can see in Chobe National Park (genus Lamprotornis, Glossy Starlings and Allies) are Greater Blue-eared Starling (about 20%), Burchell's Glossy-starling (about 20%) and Red-shouldered Glossy-starling (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Meves's Glossy-starling is recorded against all the birds logged in Chobe National Park (200 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.
