Elaphrornis palliseri
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The Sri Lanka bush warbler (Elaphrornis palliseri), also known as Ceylon bush warbler or Palliser's warbler, is an Old World warbler which is an endemic resident breeder in Sri Lanka, where it is the only bush warbler. The Sri Lanka bush warbler has sometimes been placed in the genus Bradypterus and a 2018 study confirms that it is a sister to the clade that contains the Bradypterus and Megalurus warblers; it appears to be closely related to that genus, but differs in structure (relatively shorter-tailed and longer-billed), plumage (unmarked) and song. It is monotypic. The species is named after the collector Captain Edward Palliser (1826-1907). Edward and his brother Fred Palliser were both collectors in Sri Lanka. The species was described by Kelaart but published by Edward Blyth in 1851.
The Sri Lanka bush warbler is a bird of dense forest undergrowth, often close to water. It is found in the highlands of central Sri Lanka, usually above 1200 m. The nest is built in a shrub, and two eggs are laid. This is a medium-large warbler at 14 cm. The adult has a plain brown back, pale grey underparts, a broad tail and short wings. There... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Horton Plains National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler sighting in Horton Plains National Park on a given day, based on 356 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 10th most-seen of the 102 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler in Horton Plains National Park on a given day, against about 40% in June and July, the lowest months. That is one of Horton Plains National Park's wettest months, with about 350 mm of rain against 80 mm in March.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Only Horton Plains National Park, in our data
Horton Plains National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler sightings: about 70% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler that you can see in Horton Plains National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Sri Lanka White-eye (about 90%), Pied Bushchat (about 90%) and Yellow-eared Bulbul (about 90%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Horton Plains National Park (356 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.
