Lonchura oryzivora
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The Java sparrow (Padda oryzivora; syn. Lonchura oryzivora), also known as the Java finch, Java rice sparrow or Java rice bird, is a small passerine bird. This species in the family Estrildidae is a resident breeding bird in Java, Bali, and Bawean in Indonesia. It is a popular cage bird, and has been introduced into many other countries.
The Java sparrow was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Loxia oryzivora. The specific epithet combines Latin oryza meaning "rice" with -vorus meaning "eating". Linnaeus based his description on the "Padda or Rice-bird" that had been described and illustrated in 1743 by the English naturalist George Edwards in his A Natural History of Uncommon Birds. Edwards believed that his specimens had come from China but mentions the common name "Java sparrow".
The species was long classified in the genus Padda, but on the basis of preliminary genetic studies Padda was merged into the genus Lonchura in 2009, before being returned to its older generic status in 2020 following more detailed genetic analysis.
The Java sparrow is about... Wikipedia →
Recording0:17
United States · 2023
© Steven Kurniawidjaja · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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United States · 2022
© Cori Dixon · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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United States · 2023
© nature_jane · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manila | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 2 | Davao City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 3 | Bangkok | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Taipei | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Java Sparrow sighting in Bangkok on a given day, based on 727 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 73rd most-seen of the 277 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.
January, May–September and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Java Sparrow in Bangkok on a given day, against under 5% in February–April, October and December, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Java Sparrow sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Java Sparrow sightings, Bangkok ranks 3rd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Manila (Philippines, about 10%) and Davao City (Philippines, about 10%).
Same genus: Lonchura
The closest relatives of the Java Sparrow that you can see in Bangkok (genus Lonchura, Typical Munias and Mannikins) are Nutmeg Mannikin (about 50%) and White-rumped Munia (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Java Sparrow is recorded against all the birds logged in Bangkok (727 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.
