Leiothrix argentauris
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The silver-eared mesia (Leiothrix argentauris) is a species of bird from South East Asia. The species was once placed in the large Old World babbler family Timaliidae, but that family has recently been split with this species being placed with the laughingthrushes in the new family Leiothrichidae.
The species is sometimes placed in its own genus Mesia, or in the genus Leiothrix with the red-billed leiothrix. There are seven described subspecies, with considerable variation in plumage between them. Further research is needed to establish if this represents a single species or not.
The subspecies and their distributions are: M argentauris argentauris (Hodgson, 1837) - Northern and eastern India, Bhutan, northern Burma and southern China. M argentauris galbana (Mayr & Greenway, 1938) - Southern Burma and northern Thailand
M argentauris ricketti (La Touche, 1923) - China (Yunnan, Guixhou & Guangxi), and northern Laos and Vietnam. M argentauris cunhaci (Robinson & Kloss, 1919) - Southern Laos & Vietnam, Cambodia. M argentauris tahanensis (Yen Kwokyung, 1934) - Southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia.
M argentauris rookmakeri (Junge, 1948) - Northern Sumatra... Wikipedia →
Recording0:44
Vietnam · 2025
© Next Continent: Wildlife, Photography and Natural History Tours · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:04
Hong Kong SAR China · 2019
© johnallcock · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:12
Macao SAR China · 2025
© Miles 小智 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 3 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 4 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 5 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zhuhai [Macau] | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 2 | Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Tuen Mun | 🇨🇳 China |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vinpearl Safari | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 2 | Beijing Zoo | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Edward Youde Aviary | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Silver-eared Mesia sighting in Namdapha National Park on a given day, based on 507 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 25th most-seen of the 298 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Silver-eared Mesia in Namdapha National Park on a given day, against about 10% in May, the lowest month. That is one of Namdapha National Park's driest months, with about 50 mm of rain against 660 mm in July. June to September have too few records to rate.
Between 1 and 4 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Silver-eared Mesia sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Yes
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Silver-eared Mesia sightings, Namdapha National Park has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come Doi Inthanon National Park (Thailand, about 30%) and Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan, about 20%).
Same family: Leiothrichidae
The closest relatives of the Silver-eared Mesia that you can see in Namdapha National Park (family Leiothrichidae, Laughingthrushes and Allies) are White-crested Laughingthrush (about 40%), Long-tailed Sibia (about 40%) and Rufous-backed Sibia (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Silver-eared Mesia is recorded against all the birds logged in Namdapha National Park (507 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.
