Melanochlora sultanea
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
The sultan tit (Melanochlora sultanea) is an Asian forest bird with black upperparts plumage and yellow underparts, dark bill, and (depending on subspecies) a yellow or black crest. The sexes are similar, though the female has slightly duller plumage with greenish-black upperparts and throat. The young bird is duller than the adult and has a shorter crest. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Melanochlora, which is fairly distinct from other tits, third-basal in the family Paridae after Cephalopyrus and Sylviparus.
The sultan tit forages mostly on invertebrates and larvae. The food sources are grasshoppers, mantises and web spiders, in addition to berries, other fruits and seeds. The search for food is mostly in the tree canopy, but sometimes also in higher undergrowth and bamboo areas.
Sultan tits appear often in small associations of up to twelve individuals and socialize with other species like warblers. The male has the forehead and crown with the crest brilliant yellow (except glossy black in one subspecies); the whole upper plumage, sides of the head and neck, chin, throat, and breast-deep black glossed with... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 3 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 5 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 7 | Khao Luang National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 8 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 9 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sultan Tit sighting in Doi Inthanon National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 344th most-seen of the 367 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sultan Tit in Doi Inthanon National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 2 and 5 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sultan Tit sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
9th of 9
Of the 9 parks where we can rate Sultan Tit sightings, Doi Inthanon National Park ranks 9th at under 5%. The best odds are in Namdapha National Park (India, about 50%), Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan, about 30%) and Kaeng Krachan National Park (Thailand, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Paridae
The closest relatives of the Sultan Tit that you can see in Doi Inthanon National Park (family Paridae, Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice) are Yellow-cheeked Tit (about 40%), Cinereous Tit (about 20%) and Yellow-browed Tit (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sultan Tit is recorded against all the birds logged in Doi Inthanon National Park (7 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.
