Black-faced Quailfinch

Black-faced Quailfinch

Ortygospiza atricollis

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Nairobi National Park

In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%

332 Verified sightings at Nairobi National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,359 In all 16 parks
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Black-faced Quailfinch

The black-faced quailfinch (Ortygospiza atricollis atricollis), is a common subspecies of estrildid finch found in western and central of Africa. Some taxonomists consider it to be conspecific with the African quailfinch, others consider all three species to be conspecific.

BirdLife Species Factsheet Quail Finch/Black-faced quailfinch - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. African Quailfinch (Ortygospiza atricollis) - Species page in Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:17

Zambia · 2022

© Dries Van de Loock · XC758508 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Flight call0:12

South Africa · 2021

© Lynette Rudman · XC648492 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:49

Mozambique · 2016

© Jude Allport · XC316699 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
2 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
3 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
4 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
5 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
6 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
7 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
8 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
9 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
<5%
10 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
11 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
12 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%
13 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
14 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
15 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
16 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Zoo Pilsen 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Black-faced Quailfinch in Nairobi National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Black-faced Quailfinch sighting in Nairobi National Park on a given day, based on 332 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 128th most-seen of the 371 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.

When is the best time to see a Black-faced Quailfinch in Nairobi National Park?

June and August

In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Black-faced Quailfinch in Nairobi National Park on a given day, against about 10% in April, July and December–February, the lowest months. Those are among Nairobi National Park's driest months, with about 30 mm of rain a month against 180 mm in April.

What time of day is best to see a Black-faced Quailfinch?

Between 10 am and 1 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-faced Quailfinch sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Nairobi National Park the best place to see a Black-faced Quailfinch?

Yes

Of the 16 parks where we can rate Black-faced Quailfinch sightings, Nairobi National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Masai Mara National Reserve (Kenya, about 10%) and Kafue National Park (Zambia, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Black-faced Quailfinch live in Nairobi National Park?

Same family: Estrildidae

The closest relatives of the Black-faced Quailfinch that you can see in Nairobi National Park (family Estrildidae, Waxbills and Allies) are Red-billed Firefinch (about 50%), Purple Grenadier (about 50%) and Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Black-faced Quailfinch sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Black-faced Quailfinch is recorded against all the birds logged in Nairobi National Park (332 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.

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