Singing Cisticola

Singing Cisticola

Cisticola cantans

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Ngorongoro Conservation Area

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%

93 Verified sightings at Ngorongoro Conservation Area From 2019 to 2026
1,302 In all 18 parks
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Singing Cisticola

The singing cisticola (Cisticola cantans) is a species of bird in the family Cisticolidae. It is native to northern and eastern sub-Saharan Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.

Singing cisticola - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:23

Uganda · 2022

© Peter Boesman · XC739554 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call1:10

Senegal · 2019

© Bram Piot · XC452934 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:25

Gambia · 2022

© Joost van Bruggen · XC896703 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~40%
2 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~30%
3 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
~10%
4 Bale Mountains National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~10%
5 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
6 Niokolo-Koba National Park 🇸🇳 Senegal
<5%
7 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
8 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
9 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
10 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
11 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
12 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
13 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
14 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
15 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
16 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
17 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
18 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nairobi 🇰🇪 Kenya
~30%
2 Ouagadougou 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso
~10%
3 Lilongwe 🇲🇼 Malawi
~10%
4 Kigali 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
5 Accra 🇬🇭 Ghana
<5%
6 Abuja 🇳🇬 Nigeria
<5%
7 Serrekunda 🇬🇲 Gambia
<5%
8 Kampala 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Singing Cisticola in Ngorongoro Conservation Area?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Singing Cisticola sighting in Ngorongoro Conservation Area on a given day, based on 93 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 273rd most-seen of the 519 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Singing Cisticola in Ngorongoro Conservation Area?

January, April and October–November

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Singing Cisticola in Ngorongoro Conservation Area on a given day, against under 5% in February–March, May–September and December, the lowest months. Those are among Ngorongoro Conservation Area's wettest months, with about 130 mm of rain a month against almost none in July.

What time of day is best to see a Singing Cisticola?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Singing Cisticola 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 Ngorongoro Conservation Area the best place to see a Singing Cisticola?

5th of 18

Of the 18 parks where we can rate Singing Cisticola sightings, Ngorongoro Conservation Area ranks 5th at under 5%. The best odds are in Nairobi National Park (Kenya, about 40%), Arusha National Park (Tanzania, about 30%) and Gorongosa National Park (Mozambique, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Singing Cisticola live in Ngorongoro Conservation Area?

Same genus: Cisticola

The closest relatives of the Singing Cisticola that you can see in Ngorongoro Conservation Area (genus Cisticola, Cisticolas) are Rattling Cisticola (about 20%), Winding Cisticola (about 20%) and Hunter's Cisticola (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Singing Cisticola sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Singing Cisticola is recorded against all the birds logged in Ngorongoro Conservation Area (93 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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