Hippolais olivetorum
Silhouette: John Gerrard Keulemans · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The olive-tree warbler (Hippolais olivetorum) is a species of passerine bird in the family Acrocephalidae, the reed and tree warblers. It breeds in southeast Europe and the Near East. It is migratory, wintering in eastern and southern Africa, from Kenya south to South Africa.
The olive-tree warbler was first formally described as Salicaria olivetorum in 1837 by the English geologist, ornithologist, naturalist and systematist Hugh Strickland with its type locality given as Zante in the Ionian Islands, Western Greece. This species is now classified in the genus Hippolais, the tree warblers, within the family Acrocephalidae. All the "Old World warblers" were formerly classified within the wastebin taxon known as Sylviidae sensu lato but in the late 20th Century molecular studies resulted in this taxon being divided into a number of families.
The olive-tree warbler belongs to the genus Hippolais, this name is from Ancient Greek hupolais, as misspelt by Linnaeus. It referred to a small bird mentioned by Aristotle and others and may be onomatopoeic or derived from hupo,"under", and laas, "stone". The specific name olivetorum is Latin for "of the olive groves... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Olive-tree Warbler sighting in Kruger National Park on a given day, based on 95 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 303rd most-seen of the 464 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and February
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Olive-tree Warbler in Kruger National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March to December, the lowest months. Those are among Kruger National Park's wettest months, with about 100 mm of rain a month against almost none in August.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Olive-tree Warbler 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 3 parks where we can rate Olive-tree Warbler sightings, Kruger National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Olive-tree Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Kruger National Park (95 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.
