Horsfield's Babbler

Horsfield's Babbler

Malacocincla sepiaria

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Kuala Lumpur

In 3 days <5%

6 Verified sightings at Kuala Lumpur
834 In all 5 parks From 2019 to 2026
April Best month
🌙 Nocturnal When it's spotted

About the Horsfield's Babbler

Horsfield's babbler (Malacocincla sepiaria) is a species of bird in the family Pellorneidae. It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.

The common name commemorates the American naturalist Thomas Horsfield. Collar, N. J. & Robson, C. 2007. Family Timaliidae (Babblers) pp. 70 – 291 in; del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:08

Malaysia · 2025

© Nick Talbot · XC1039215 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:27

Indonesia · 2024

© Ding Li Yong · XC940269 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:15

Indonesia · 2023

© D. Septa · XC804471 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bali Barat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~30%
2 Danum Valley Conservation Area 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~20%
3 Kerinci Seblat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~20%
4 Taman Negara National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
5 Sepilok 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bandung 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
2 Jakarta 🇮🇩 Indonesia
<5%
3 Kuala Lumpur 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Horsfield's Babbler in Kuala Lumpur?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Horsfield's Babbler sighting in Kuala Lumpur on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 212th most-seen of the 228 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Horsfield's Babbler in Kuala Lumpur?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Horsfield's Babbler in Kuala Lumpur on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Horsfield's Babbler?

Between 2 and 5 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Horsfield's Babbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.

Is Kuala Lumpur the best place to see a Horsfield's Babbler?

3rd of 3

Of the 3 cities where we can rate Horsfield's Babbler sightings, Kuala Lumpur ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Bandung (Indonesia, about 10%) and Jakarta (Indonesia, under 5%).

Where does the Horsfield's Babbler sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Horsfield's Babbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Kuala Lumpur (6 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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