Turdus olivaceus
Silhouette: Sharon Wegner-Larsen · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The olive thrush (Turdus olivaceus) is, in its range, one of the most common members of the thrush family (Turdidae). It occurs in African highlands from the montane regions in Eastern and Central Africa in the north to the Cape of Good Hope in the south. It is a bird of forest and woodland, but has locally adapted to parks and large gardens in suburban areas.
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the olive thrush in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. He used the French name Le merle olive du Cap de Bonne Espérance and the Latin Merula Olivacea Capitis Bonae Spei. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the olive thrush. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Turdus olivaceus and cited Brisson's work.
Six subspecies are recognised: Turdus... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Golden Gate Highlands National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 6 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monkeyland | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Birds of Eden | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report an Olive Thrush sighting in Garden Route National Park on a given day, based on 520 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 22nd most-seen of the 222 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May and October
In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report an Olive Thrush in Garden Route National Park on a given day, against about 20% in February and June, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Olive Thrush sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Olive Thrush sightings, Garden Route National Park ranks 2nd at about 40%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Table Mountain National Park (South Africa, about 40%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Olive Thrush that you can see in Garden Route National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Cape White-eye (about 70%), Fork-tailed Drongo (about 60%) and Sombre Greenbul (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Olive Thrush is recorded against all the birds logged in Garden Route National Park (520 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.
