Coracias abyssinicus
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The Abyssinian roller (Coracias abyssinicus), or Senegal roller, is a member of the roller family of birds which breeds across tropical Africa in a belt south of the Sahara, known as the Sahel. It is resident in the southern part of its range, but northern breeding populations are short-distance migrants, moving further south after the wet season.
The phylogenetic relationships among the Coracias species are shown below, from the molecular study by Johansson et al. (2018) The Abyssinian roller is a large bird, nearly the size of a jackdaw at 28–30 cm (11–12 in). It has a warm brown back, with the rest of the plumage mainly blue. Adults have 12 cm (4.7 in) long tail streamers. Sexes are similar, but the juvenile is a drabber version of the adult. Abyssinian roller is striking in its strong direct flight, with the brilliant blues of the wings contrasting with the brown back and the long tail streamers trailing behind. The call of the Abyssinian roller is a harsh crow-like gak sound, or a screeched aaaargh.
The Abyssinian roller is native to tropical Africa. Its range extends from southern Mauritania and Senegal in the west...
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 2 | Kidepo Valley National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 3 | Niokolo-Koba National Park | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 4 | Pendjari National Park | 🇧🇯 Benin | |
| 5 | Mole National Park | 🇬🇭 Ghana | |
| 6 | Saloum Delta National Park | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 7 | Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 8 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maiduguri | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | |
| 2 | N'Djamena | 🇹🇩 Chad | |
| 3 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia | |
| 4 | Ouagadougou | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | |
| 5 | Abuja | 🇳🇬 Nigeria |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Roller sighting in Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary on a given day, based on 36 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 107th most-seen of the 173 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Roller in Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary on a given day, against about 10% in March–April and December, the lowest months. That is one of Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary's driest months, with almost no rain against 55 mm in August. May to October have too few records to rate.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Abyssinian Roller sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Abyssinian Roller sightings, Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary ranks 7th at about 20%. The best odds are in Awash National Park (Ethiopia, about 70%), Kidepo Valley National Park (Uganda, about 60%) and Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Coraciiformes
The closest relatives of the Abyssinian Roller that you can see in Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary (order Coraciiformes, Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies) are Pied Kingfisher (about 70%), Little Bee-eater (about 60%) and Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Abyssinian Roller is recorded against all the birds logged in Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary (36 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
