Pteruthius melanotis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The black-eared shrike-babbler (Pteruthius melanotis) is a bird species in the vireo family, Vireonidae. It was traditionally considered as an aberrant Old World babbler and formerly placed in the family Timaliidae. It was long noted that their habits resembled those of vireos, but this was previously ascribed to the result of convergent evolution. It is found in Southeast Asia from the Himalayas to western Malaysia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Collar, N. J. & Robson, C. 2007. Family Timaliidae (Babblers) pp. 70–291 in; del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 2 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black-eared Shrike-Babbler sighting in Namdapha National Park on a given day, based on 42 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 188th most-seen of the 298 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black-eared Shrike-Babbler in Namdapha National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–May and October–January, the lowest months. That is one of Namdapha National Park's driest months, with about 100 mm of rain against 660 mm in July. June to September have too few records to rate.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-eared Shrike-Babbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Black-eared Shrike-Babbler sightings, Namdapha National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black-eared Shrike-Babbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Namdapha National Park (42 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.
