Dicrurus adsimilis
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis), also called the common drongo or African drongo, is a small bird found from the Sahel to South Africa that lives in wooded habitats, particularly woodlands and savannas. Like other drongos, the fork-tailed is mostly insectivorous; its diet mainly consists of butterflies, termites, and grasshoppers.
Physically, this species is characterized with a narrow fork-shaped tail, red-brownish eyes, and black plumage throughout all of its body. These birds nest close to wetlands, forests, and farms and the breeding season varies depending the region. The female usually lays one to four eggs, which hatch in 15 to 18 days.
The fork-tailed drongo is known for its ability to deceptively mimic other bird alarm calls in order for a certain animal to flee the scene so it can steal their food (kleptoparasitism). They are also known for their aggressive and fearless behavior, often attacking and driving away much larger animals, including birds of prey, when their nest is in danger. Due to its extensive range and stable population, the fork-tailed drongo is classified by the IUCN Red List as a least-concern species. Wikipedia →
Very likely
About 80% of wildlife watchers report a Fork-tailed Drongo sighting in Meru National Park on a given day, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 4th most-seen of the 243 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April and October
In those months about 90% of wildlife watchers report a Fork-tailed Drongo in Meru National Park on a given day, against about 60% in March, September and December, the lowest months. Those are among Meru National Park's wettest months, with about 140 mm of rain a month against almost none in July. May and July–August have too few records to rate.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Fork-tailed Drongo 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 55 parks where we can rate Fork-tailed Drongo sightings, Meru National Park ranks 3rd at about 80%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Etosha National Park (Namibia, about 80%) and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (South Africa, about 80%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Fork-tailed Drongo that you can see in Meru National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Superb Starling (about 90%), White-headed Buffalo-Weaver (about 80%) and White-browed Sparrow-Weaver (about 80%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Fork-tailed Drongo is recorded against all the birds logged in Meru National Park (157 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.
