Rüppell's Glossy-starling

Rüppell's Glossy-starling

Lamprotornis purpuroptera

Silhouette: Rafael Maia · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Kigali

In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%

298 Verified sightings at Kigali
10,076 In all 22 parks From 2019 to 2026
September Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Rüppell's Glossy-starling

Rüppell's starling (Lamprotornis purpuroptera), also known as Rueppell's glossy-starling or Rueppell's long-tailed starling, is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in the African countries of Burundi, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:22

Kenya · 2026

© Ding Li Yong · XC1178429 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Song1:00

Uganda · 2026

© Phil Shaw · XC1172447 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Subsong0:23

Kenya · 2022

© Alexander Schlatmann · XC748260 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~80%
2 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~70%
3 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~70%
4 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~60%
5 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~60%
6 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~50%
7 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~50%
8 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~50%
9 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~40%
10 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~30%
11 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
~30%
12 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
13 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
14 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
15 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
16 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
17 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
18 Semuliki National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
19 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
20 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
21 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
22 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kampala 🇺🇬 Uganda
~50%
2 Bujumbura 🇧🇮 Burundi
~30%
3 Kigali 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~20%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Rüppell's Glossy-starling in Kigali?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Rüppell's Glossy-starling sighting in Kigali on a given day, based on 298 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 53rd most-seen of the 244 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Rüppell's Glossy-starling in Kigali?

January, June–July, September and November

In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Rüppell's Glossy-starling in Kigali on a given day, against about 10% in February, the lowest month.

What time of day is best to see a Rüppell's Glossy-starling?

Between 2 and 5 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rüppell'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.

Is Kigali the best place to see a Rüppell's Glossy-starling?

3rd of 3

Of the 3 cities where we can rate Rüppell's Glossy-starling sightings, Kigali ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Kampala (Uganda, about 50%) and Bujumbura (Burundi, about 30%).

Where does the Rüppell's Glossy-starling sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Rüppell's Glossy-starling is recorded against all the birds logged in Kigali (298 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.

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