Monticola brevipes
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The short-toed rock thrush (Monticola brevipes) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. Birds in the eastern part of its range are sometimes regarded as a separate species, the Pretoria rock thrush or Transvaal rock thrush (M. pretoriae).
Short-toed rock thrush - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Short-toed rock-thrush Structured guide to the species in southern Africa Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Waterberg Plateau Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 2 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 5 | Namib-Naukluft National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Short-toed Rock-Thrush sighting in Etosha National Park on a given day, based on 86 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 145th most-seen of the 260 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May to September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Short-toed Rock-Thrush in Etosha National Park on a given day, against under 5% in October to April, the lowest months. Those are among Etosha National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 75 mm in January.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Short-toed Rock-Thrush sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Short-toed Rock-Thrush sightings, Etosha National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Waterberg Plateau Park (Namibia, about 20%), Pilanesberg National Park (South Africa, about 10%) and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (South Africa, about 10%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Short-toed Rock-Thrush that you can see in Etosha National Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are Mariqua Flycatcher (about 50%), Kalahari Scrub Robin (about 20%) and White-browed Scrub Robin (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Short-toed Rock-Thrush is recorded against all the birds logged in Etosha National Park (86 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.
