Coracias benghalensis
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The Indian roller (Coracias benghalensis) is a bird of the family Coraciidae. It is 30–34 cm (12–13 in) long with a wingspan of 65–74 cm (26–29 in) and weighs 166–176 g (5.9–6.2 oz). The face and throat are pinkish, the head and back are brown, with blue on the rump and contrasting light and dark blue on the wings and tail. The bright blue markings on the wing are prominent in flight. The sexes are similar in appearance. Two subspecies are recognised.
The Indian roller occurs widely from West Asia to the Indian subcontinent. Often found perched on roadside trees and wires, it is common in open grassland and scrub forest habitats, and has adapted well to human-modified landscapes. It mainly feeds on insects, especially beetles. The species is best known for the aerobatic displays of males during the breeding season. Adult males and females form pair bonds and raise the young together. The female lays 3–5 eggs in a cavity or crevice, which is lined with a thin mat of straw or feathers. The roller is the state bird of three Indian states. It is listed as a species of least concern on the IUCN Red List.
The Indian roller was one of the many bird species originally described... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 5 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 6 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 8 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 9 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 12 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 13 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 14 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 15 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 16 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 17 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 18 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 19 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 20 | Sinharaja Forest Reserve | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dubai | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | |
| 2 | Tiruchirappalli | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Visakhapatnam | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Durg | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Coimbatore | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Indore | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Bareilly | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Salem | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Vasai-Virar | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Bhopal | 🇮🇳 India |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Roller sighting in Minneriya National Park on a given day, based on 71 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 103rd most-seen of the 155 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June to September
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Roller in Minneriya National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–May and November, the lowest months. Those are among Minneriya National Park's driest months, with about 45 mm of rain a month against 340 mm in November.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Indian Roller sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
14th of 20
Of the 20 parks where we can rate Indian Roller sightings, Minneriya National Park ranks 14th at about 10%. The best odds are in Bandhavgarh National Park (India, about 60%), Kanha National Park (India, about 60%) and Satpura National Park (India, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Coraciiformes
The closest relatives of the Indian Roller that you can see in Minneriya National Park (order Coraciiformes, Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies) are White-throated Kingfisher (about 60%), Asian Green Bee-eater (about 60%) and Common Kingfisher (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Indian Roller is recorded against all the birds logged in Minneriya National Park (71 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.
