Crithagra citrinipectus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10%
The lemon-breasted canary (Crithagra citrinipectus), also known as the lemon-breasted seedeater, is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are dry savannah, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and rural gardens.
The lemon-breasted canary was identified as species in 1960 by Clancey and Lawson from a type obtained near Panda, in Inhambane Province of southern Mozambique. Research involving mitochondrial DNA analysis suggests that this species along with S. leucopygia, S. mozambicus, and S. dorsostriatus belong in a separate genus, Ochrospiza, as they have been revealed to be only distantly related to other African members of the present genus, Serinus. However, before a revision can be made, a detailed inspection of all the taxa in the current genus is necessary. Some consider this species to be a hybrid between S. atrogularis and S. mozambicus.
The lemon-breasted canary was formerly placed in the genus Serinus but phylogenetic analysis using mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences found that the genus was polyphyletic. The genus was therefore split and... Wikipedia →
Call0:25
Mozambique · 2017
© Samuel Jones · XC395992 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Lemon-breasted Seedeater sighting in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 206th most-seen of the 220 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lemon-breasted Seedeater in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months. That is one of Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain against 140 mm in February.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lemon-breasted Seedeater sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all 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 Lemon-breasted Seedeater sightings, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 10%), iSimangaliso Wetland Park (South Africa, under 5%) and uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, under 5%).
Same genus: Crithagra
The closest relatives of the Lemon-breasted Seedeater that you can see in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (genus Crithagra, African Seedeaters, Serins, Canaries, and Citrils) are Yellow-fronted Canary (about 50%) and Brimstone Canary (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lemon-breasted Seedeater is recorded against all the birds logged in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (6 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.
