Lonchura fuscans
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The dusky munia (Lonchura fuscans) is a species in the estrildid finch Family and is endemic to Borneo. It is also commonly referred to as the Dusky mannikin and the Bornean munia. It is in the genus Lonchura and is a monotypic species, so there are no subspecies.
The status of the species is evaluated as Least Concern. It is most commonly spotted on the Island Borneo, but can be found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. It is also an introduced species in Natuna, Banggi, Cagayan and Sulu Islands. While the population size of the species is unknown, the population growth is stable, and virtually unthreatened. It is found in subtropical/ tropical lowland shrubland, forest and grassland habitat. Its habitat can vary widely, with sightings being recorded in the foothills of the island Borneo, grasslands, and agricultural fields such as rice paddy fields. They also tend to reside along riverbanks, reed-beds, secondary scrub and cultivated areas, from sea-level all the way up to 500 meters above ground. They are not migrants, and do not venture outside of their habitat during seasonal changes like many other species of birds. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Danum Valley Conservation Area | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Bako National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 4 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 5 | Tanjung Puting National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 6 | Kinabalu Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuching | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Dusky Munia sighting in Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary 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 231 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and August
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Dusky Munia in Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary on a given day, against under 5% in December, the lowest month.
Between midnight and 3 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Dusky Munia sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
4th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Dusky Munia sightings, Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Danum Valley Conservation Area (Malaysia, about 30%), Sepilok (Malaysia, about 20%) and Bako National Park (Malaysia, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Dusky Munia is recorded against all the birds logged in Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary (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.
