Black Cuckoo-shrike

Black Cuckoo-shrike

Campephaga flava

Silhouette: PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Nairobi

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

106 Verified sightings at Nairobi
2,591 In all 41 parks From 2019 to 2026
October Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Black Cuckoo-shrike

The black cuckooshrike (Campephaga flava) is a species of bird in the cuckooshrike family Campephagidae. The species is closely related to Petit's cuckooshrike and the red-shouldered cuckooshrike, and forms a superspecies with them. It is also known as the African black cuckooshrike.

It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, dry savanna, and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.

Black Cuckooshrike - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:24

Zambia · 2025

© Dries Van de Loock · XC978971 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:13

South Africa · 2023

© Ehren Eksteen · XC845531 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:22

South Africa · 2019

© Tim Cockcroft · XC476716 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~30%
2 uMkhuze Game Reserve 🇿🇦 South Africa
~30%
3 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
4 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
5 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
6 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
7 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
8 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
~10%
9 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
10 Volcanoes National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~10%
11 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
12 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~10%
13 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
14 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~10%
15 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
~10%
16 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
17 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~10%
18 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~10%
19 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
20 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
21 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
22 Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
23 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
24 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
25 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
26 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
27 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
28 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
29 De Hoop Nature Reserve 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
30 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
31 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
32 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
33 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
34 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
35 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
36 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
<5%
37 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%
38 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%
39 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
40 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
41 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kigali 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~10%
2 Nairobi 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
3 Pretoria 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
4 Harare 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
<5%
5 Durban 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
6 Kampala 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
7 Johannesburg 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Black Cuckoo-shrike in Nairobi?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black Cuckoo-shrike sighting in Nairobi on a given day, based on 106 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 78th most-seen of the 234 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.

When is the best time to see a Black Cuckoo-shrike in Nairobi?

September and October

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Black Cuckoo-shrike in Nairobi on a given day, against under 5% in January to June, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Black Cuckoo-shrike?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black Cuckoo-shrike sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Nairobi the best place to see a Black Cuckoo-shrike?

Among the best

Of the 7 cities where we can rate Black Cuckoo-shrike sightings, Nairobi ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Kigali (Rwanda, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Black Cuckoo-shrike live in Nairobi?

Same order: Passeriformes

The closest relatives of the Black Cuckoo-shrike that you can see in Nairobi (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Common Bulbul (about 80%), Abyssinian Thrush (about 70%) and Pied Crow (about 70%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Black Cuckoo-shrike sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Black Cuckoo-shrike is recorded against all the birds logged in Nairobi (106 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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