Melaenornis pammelaina
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The southern black flycatcher (Melaenornis pammelaina) is a small passerine bird of the genus Melaenornis in the flycatcher family, Muscicapidae, native to open and lightly wooded areas of eastern and southern Africa. This species has a large range, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 4,000,000 square kilometres (1,500,000 sq mi). The global population size has not been quantified but the bird is listed by the IUCN as being of "Least concern".
The southern black flycatcher is entirely black, with a black beak and black legs. The iris of the eye is brown and this, along with the square-cut tail, helps distinguish it from the otherwise similar fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis) which has a red iris and long forked tail.
The southern black flycatcher is native to eastern and southern Africa. It has been recorded from Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Namibia, Eswatini, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and South Africa. It is typically found in habitats with open areas and light woodland, riparian corridors, the edges of plantations... Wikipedia →
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Black Flycatcher sighting in Durban on a given day, based on 412 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 17th most-seen of the 219 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May and August
In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Black Flycatcher in Durban on a given day, against about 20% in October, the lowest month. Those are among Durban's driest months, with about 40 mm of rain a month against 210 mm in January.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Southern Black Flycatcher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 7 cities where we can rate Southern Black Flycatcher sightings, Durban has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come Harare (Zimbabwe, about 30%) and Maputo (Mozambique, about 10%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Southern Black Flycatcher that you can see in Durban (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are Redcap Robinchat (about 30%), African Dusky Flycatcher (about 20%) and Familiar Chat (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Southern Black Flycatcher is recorded against all the birds logged in Durban (412 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.
