Empidornis semipartitus
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The silverbird (Empidornis semipartitus) is an Old World flycatcher native to Eastern Africa, from Sudan to Tanzania. The species is the only member of the genus Empidornis, although it is sometimes placed in the genus Melaenornis.
The silverbird is a stunning flycatcher of open areas west of the Rift Valley, silvery grey above and tawny orange below. Juveniles have black-bordered tawny spots on upperparts, mottled buff and black on throats and breasts. The species is 18 cm (7.1 in) long and weighs 22–23 g (0.78–0.81 oz).
The call of the silverbird uses short phrases which are slightly thrush-like. Sometimes the terminal note is higher and thinner, eee-sleeur-eeee or sweet siursur-eet-seet; also a longer eep-eep churEErip, eep-eep cherip chch chchch eee, embellished with chattering and seep notes.
Dale A. Zimmerman, Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania, Princeton University Press, 1999 del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 11: Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Lynx Edicions. ISBN 84-96553-06-X.
Image at ADW Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 2 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Kidepo Valley National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 4 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 6 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Silverbird sighting in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, based on 642 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 18th most-seen of the 424 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November and December
In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Silverbird in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, against about 30% in April and May, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Silverbird sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Silverbird sightings, Murchison Falls National Park has the highest daily chance: about 50%. Next come Serengeti National Park (Tanzania, about 50%) and Kidepo Valley National Park (Uganda, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Silverbird that you can see in Murchison Falls National Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are Spotted Morning-Thrush (about 40%), Sooty Chat (about 20%) and Swamp Flycatcher (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Silverbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Murchison Falls National Park (642 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.
