Lamprotornis hildebrandti
Silhouette: Rafael Maia · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Hildebrandt's starling (Lamprotornis hildebrandti) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It forms a superspecies with and has previously been included in the same species as Shelley's starling, a migratory species ranging from Ethiopia and Somalia to Kenya. Both of these species have also been combined into a superspecies with the chestnut-bellied starling of West Africa. It was originally placed in the now defunct genus Notauges. The species is named after Johann Maria Hildebrandt, a German collector who was the first European to obtain specimens.
Hildebrandt's starling is found in Kenya and Tanzania, where it occupies open country between 500 and 2,200 m (1,600 and 7,200 ft). Its habitat is open woodland and open thornbrush country. The species is often recorded as being uncommon, but it varies from being fairly common to fairly uncommon. It is not considered threatened by the IUCN, and is listed as least concern. Its habitat is not threatened and it occurs in a number of protected areas.
Hildebrandt's starling is 18 cm (7.1 in) in length and weighs 50 to 69 g (1.8–2.4 oz). The adult has bright iridescent plumage on its... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 2 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 6 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 8 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 9 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 10 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 11 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 12 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 13 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Birds of Eden | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Hildebrandt's Starling sighting in Masai Mara National Reserve on a given day, based on 621 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 65th most-seen of the 398 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, April and November
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Hildebrandt's Starling in Masai Mara National Reserve on a given day, against about 10% in May, the lowest month. Those are among Masai Mara National Reserve's wettest months, with about 100 mm of rain a month against 15 mm in July.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hildebrandt's Starling sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 13
Of the 13 parks where we can rate Hildebrandt's Starling sightings, Masai Mara National Reserve ranks 6th at about 20%. The best odds are in Serengeti National Park (Tanzania, about 50%), Mkomazi National Park (Tanzania, about 30%) and Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Lamprotornis
The closest relatives of the Hildebrandt's Starling that you can see in Masai Mara National Reserve (genus Lamprotornis, Glossy Starlings and Allies) are Superb Starling (about 60%), Rüppell's Glossy-starling (about 50%) and Greater Blue-eared Starling (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hildebrandt's Starling is recorded against all the birds logged in Masai Mara National Reserve (621 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.
