Malaconotus blanchoti
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The grey-headed bushshrike (Malaconotus blanchoti), colloquially known as the ghostbird, is a species of passerine bird in the family Malaconotidae. It is widespread throughout sub-Saharan Africa, although relatively absent in Central Africa and the interior of southern Africa. It is the most widespread species of its genus, which consists of large bushshrikes with massive bills and mournful hooting calls. It occurs sparsely in a range of wooded habitats, though typically in denser vegetation within dry or moist savannah. The monogamous pairs occupy woodland with sufficient cover. They are sedentary, but will undertake limited post-breeding movements.
Six or seven subspecies are recognized. Wikipedia →
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Gray-headed Bushshrike sighting in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, based on 48 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 120th most-seen of the 215 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Gray-headed Bushshrike in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, the lowest month. That is one of Niokolo-Koba National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 300 mm in August. May–July and October have too few records to rate.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Gray-headed Bushshrike sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
12th of 35
Of the 35 parks where we can rate Gray-headed Bushshrike sightings, Niokolo-Koba National Park ranks 12th at about 10%. The best odds are in Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 30%), Mana Pools National Park (Zimbabwe, about 30%) and Meru National Park (Kenya, about 30%).
Same family: Malaconotidae
The closest relatives of the Gray-headed Bushshrike that you can see in Niokolo-Koba National Park (family Malaconotidae, Bushshrikes and Allies) are Yellow-crowned Gonolek (about 70%), Northern Puffback (about 30%) and Black-crowned Tchagra (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Gray-headed Bushshrike is recorded against all the birds logged in Niokolo-Koba National Park (48 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.
