Muscicapa sibirica
Silhouette: Ekytza · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The dark-sided flycatcher (Muscicapa sibirica) is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Muscicapa in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It has a wide breeding distribution in the East Palearctic with northern birds migrating south for the winter. It is also known as the Siberian flycatcher or sooty flycatcher, the latter name is also used for the sooty flycatcher (Artomyias infuscata) of Africa.
The dark-sided flycatcher was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the flycatchers in the genus Muscicapa and coined the binomial name Muscicapa sibirica. Gmelin based his account on the "Dunn flycatcher" that had been described in 1783 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham reported that the bird was found around Lake Baikal in southern Siberia.
Four subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jiuzhaigou National Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 2 | Danum Valley Conservation Area | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Langtang National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 4 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 5 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 6 | Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | |
| 7 | Khao Sok National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 8 | Khao Luang National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 9 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 10 | Nikko National Park | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 11 | Kinabalu Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 12 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 13 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 14 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 15 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 16 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 17 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 18 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 19 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 20 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Dark-sided Flycatcher sighting in Langtang National Park on a given day, based on 43 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 80th most-seen of the 225 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.
April–May, July and September–October
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Dark-sided Flycatcher in Langtang National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, March and November, the lowest months.
Between 2 and 5 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Dark-sided Flycatcher sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 20
Of the 20 parks where we can rate Dark-sided Flycatcher sightings, Langtang National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Jiuzhaigou National Park (China, about 20%) and Danum Valley Conservation Area (Malaysia, about 10%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Dark-sided Flycatcher that you can see in Langtang National Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are Blue Whistling-Thrush (about 70%), Blue-fronted Redstart (about 50%) and Plumbeous Water Redstart (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Dark-sided Flycatcher is recorded against all the birds logged in Langtang National Park (43 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.
