Euodice cantans
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The African silverbill (Euodice cantans) is a small passerine bird formerly considered conspecific with the Asian species Indian silverbill, (Euodice malabarica). This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in dry savanna habitat, south of the Sahara Desert. This species has also been introduced to other countries such as Portugal, Qatar and United States.
The African silverbill was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin under the binomial name Loxia cantans. The specific epithet is from Latin and means "singing". Gmemlin specified the locality as Africa but this was restricted to Dakar in Senegal by William Lutley Sclater and Cyril Mackworth-Praed in 1918. It is now placed with the Indian silverbill in the genus Euodice that was introduced in 1862 by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach.
In early literature, the African silverbill and the Indian silverbill (E. malabarica) were treated as conspecific. In 1943, Jean Théodore Delacour united both species in his revision of the Estrildinae. However, in 1964, Colin Harrison studied the two in a strictly comparative manner and concluded that they were two separate species... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 2 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 3 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 6 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dakar | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 2 | Ouagadougou | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | |
| 3 | Maiduguri | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | |
| 4 | N'Djamena | 🇹🇩 Chad | |
| 5 | Addis Ababa | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 6 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Tierwelt Herberstein | 🇦🇹 Austria |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an African Silverbill sighting in Addis Ababa on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 54th most-seen of the 109 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June, September and November–February
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an African Silverbill in Addis Ababa on a given day, against under 5% in March–May, July–August and October, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most African Silverbill sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 6
Of the 6 cities where we can rate African Silverbill sightings, Addis Ababa ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Dakar (Senegal, about 50%), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso, about 20%) and Maiduguri (Nigeria, about 20%).
Same family: Estrildidae
The closest relatives of the African Silverbill that you can see in Addis Ababa (family Estrildidae, Waxbills and Allies) are Red-billed Firefinch (about 40%), Bronze Mannikin (about 30%) and Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the African Silverbill is recorded against all the birds logged in Addis Ababa (24 verified sightings), 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.
