Hedydipna metallica
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The Nile Valley sunbird (Hedydipna metallica) is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found in Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Libya, and Yemen. In February, the male Nile Valley sunbird assumes his nuptial plumage which he displays in flamboyant fashion. In winter both sexes look alike, tiny, only 9 to 10 cm long, pale grey above and washed-out yellow below, with a long, slender and slightly down-curved bill.
By February the male is transformed into a glossy green extrovert with a brilliant sulfur-yellow belly and long tail streamers that add about an extra five centimetres to his length. Once transformed, he will be puffing up and parading his newfound finery and courting his duller mate. The display includes a hovering, accompanied by body rocking and wing-whirring. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Nile Valley Sunbird sighting in Luxor on a given day, based on 89 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 27th most-seen of the 82 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.
May to July
In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Nile Valley Sunbird in Luxor on a given day, against about 10% in January, the lowest month.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Nile Valley Sunbird 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 3 cities where we can rate Nile Valley Sunbird sightings, Luxor has the highest daily chance: about 30%. Next come Jeddah (Saudi Arabia, about 10%) and Cairo (Egypt, under 5%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Nile Valley Sunbird that you can see in Luxor (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Hooded Crow (about 90%), Barn Swallow (about 80%) and House Sparrow (about 80%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Nile Valley Sunbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Luxor (89 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.
