Poephila acuticauda
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The long-tailed finch (Poephila acuticauda) is a common species of estrildid finch found in northern Australia, from the Kimberley region to the Gulf of Carpentaria. It is a predominantly fawn-coloured bird with a pale grey head and prominent black bib and eyes. It inhabits dry savannah habitats in Australia and adapts readily to aviculture. It is known as the Hex finch in the United Kingdom, and Heck's finch in other parts of the world.
The species Poephila acuticauda was first described by ornithologist John Gould in 1840, placing the new taxon as Amadina acuticauda. The specimen was collected by Benjamin Bynoe, the surgeon aboard HMS Beagle, at Derby on the north-west coast of Australia. It is one of three species in the genus Poephila. It is placed in the Australo-papuan finch family Estrildidae, although this family itself was previously placed in the sparrow family Passeridae.
A variety of subspecific arrangements had been regarded as colour variation across an east to west cline, although the geographically distinct morphology came to be acknowledged in the late twentieth century. Further support was given in a genetic study published in 2005 showed that the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aquarium of Genoa | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 2 | Warsaw Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 3 | Taronga Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Adelaide Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Zoopark Limpopo | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 6 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Emperor Valley Zoo | 🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago | |
| 8 | Monkey Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | National Aviary | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | herpetarium warszawskiego ZOO | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 11 | akwarium warszawskiego ZOO | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 12 | Butterfly World | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Long-tailed Finch sighting in Kakadu National Park on a given day, based on 291 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 74th most-seen of the 186 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Long-tailed Finch in Kakadu National Park on a given day, against about 10% in January, May, August and November, the lowest months. That is one of Kakadu National Park's wettest months, with about 250 mm of rain against almost none in August. February has too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Long-tailed Finch sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Long-tailed Finch sightings, Kakadu National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Nitmiluk National Park (Australia, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Long-tailed Finch is recorded against all the birds logged in Kakadu National Park (291 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.
