Lonchura molucca
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The black-faced munia (Lonchura molucca) is a species of estrildid finch found in Indonesia and East Timor. It occurs in a wide range of habitats including artificial landscapes (e.g. parks and gardens), forest, grassland and savannah. It was first described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae in 1766. The IUCN has evaluated the status of this bird as being of least concern.
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the black-faced munia in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected from the Maluku Islands. He used the French name Le gros-bec de Moluques and the Latin Coccothraustes Moluccensis. 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 black-faced munia. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Loxia molucca and cited Brisson's work. The specific... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tangkoko Nature Reserve | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 2 | Komodo National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black-faced Munia sighting in Komodo National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 63rd most-seen of the 76 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black-faced Munia in Komodo National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–July and September–January, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-faced Munia sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Black-faced Munia sightings, Komodo National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Tangkoko Nature Reserve (Indonesia, under 5%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Black-faced Munia that you can see in Komodo National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Large-billed Crow (about 90%), Black-naped Oriole (about 60%) and Pacific Swallow (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black-faced Munia is recorded against all the birds logged in Komodo National Park (7 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.
