Rhinopomastus minor
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The Abyssinian scimitarbill (Rhinopomastus minor) is a species of bird in the family Phoeniculidae. The term Abyssinia, is an old name for the region of Ethiopia, and scimitar refers to a curved sword, which its bill resembles. It is found in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The bird is non migratory, diurnal, and terrestrial. Their nests are sometimes parasitized by the greater honeyguide (Indicator indicator) which are favored by some because they can guide to beehives.
The bird is all black with a blue-purple iridescence which covers their whole body and especially the back of the head. The bird's beak is bright orange to red and is characteristically curved and pointed. It is slightly longer than the length of its head and is built to probe into cracks and crevices for insects. It can be differentiated from other wood hoopoes by its all black legs and shorter tail, which is about the length of the bird's body excluding its head.
The males coloring tends to be more blue, whereas the females have more brown tones especially in the head. Males also tend to be slightly larger than females. Their bill length... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 3 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Kidepo Valley National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 6 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Ruaha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 9 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 10 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 11 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 12 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 13 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 14 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 15 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Scimitarbill sighting in Ngorongoro Conservation Area on a given day, based on 128 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 236th most-seen of the 519 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January–February, April and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Scimitarbill in Ngorongoro Conservation Area on a given day, against under 5% in March, May–August and October–December, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Abyssinian Scimitarbill sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 15
Of the 15 parks where we can rate Abyssinian Scimitarbill sightings, Ngorongoro Conservation Area ranks 10th at about 10%. The best odds are in Samburu National Reserve (Kenya, about 30%), Awash National Park (Ethiopia, about 30%) and Mkomazi National Park (Tanzania, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Abyssinian Scimitarbill is recorded against all the birds logged in Ngorongoro Conservation Area (128 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.
