Luscinia megarhynchos
Silhouette: Stephan Sprinz · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The common nightingale, rufous nightingale or simply nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos), is a small passerine bird which is known for its powerful and beautiful song, often described as one of the most beautiful sounds in nature. An Old World flycatcher, it belongs to a group of more terrestrial species, often called chats. Its range partly overlaps with that of the more northerly thrush nightingale (Luscinia luscinia), a closely related species with which hybrids have occurred.
The common nightingale belongs to a distinctive group of Old World flycatchers, known as chats, that were formerly thought to be thrushes. Genetic analysis showed that they were in fact types of flycatcher (Muscicapidae), with the resemblance to thrushes being the result of convergent evolution.
"Nightingale" is derived from "night" and the Old English galan, "to sing". The genus name Luscinia is Latin for "nightingale" and megarhynchos is from Ancient Greek megas, "great" and rhunkhos, "bill". Three subspecies are recognised: Western nightingale (L. m. megarhynchos) – western Europe, North Africa and Asia Minor, wintering in tropical Africa Wikipedia →
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Nightingale sighting in Madrid on a given day, based on 794 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 62nd most-seen of the 196 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.
April to June
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Common Nightingale in Madrid on a given day, against under 5% in July and September–March, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Nightingale sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
18th of 46
Of the 46 cities where we can rate Common Nightingale sightings, Madrid ranks 18th at about 10%. The best odds are in Budapest (Hungary, about 20%), Jerusalem (Israel, about 20%) and Berlin (Germany, about 20%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Common Nightingale that you can see in Madrid (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are European Robin (about 50%), Black Redstart (about 30%) and European Pied Flycatcher (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Nightingale is recorded against all the birds logged in Madrid (794 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.
