Ceryle rudis
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) is a species of water kingfisher widely distributed across Africa and Asia. Originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it has five recognised subspecies, and is the only member of the genus Ceryle. Its black-and white-plumage and crest, as well as its habit of hovering over clear lakes and rivers before diving for fish, make it distinctive. Males have a double band across the breast, while females have a single broken breast band. They are usually found in pairs or small family groups. When perched, they often bob their heads and flick up their tails.
The pied kingfisher was one of the many bird species originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae, who noted that it lived in Persia and Egypt. He named it Alcedo rudis. The German naturalist Friedrich Boie erected the genus Ceryle in 1828. The name is from classical Greek kērulos, an unidentified and probably mythical bird mentioned by Aristotle and other authors. The specific epithet rudis is Latin for "wild" or "rude".
The pied kingfisher is the only member of the genus Ceryle. Molecular analysis shows it is an early offshoot... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luxor | 🇪🇬 Egypt | |
| 2 | Kampala | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 3 | Cairo | 🇪🇬 Egypt | |
| 4 | Zanzibar City | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Mombasa | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 6 | Ouagadougou | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | |
| 7 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia | |
| 8 | Srinagar | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Kigali | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 10 | Brazzaville | 🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo |
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Kingfisher sighting in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, based on 348 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 11th most-seen of the 215 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and April
In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Kingfisher in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, against about 40% in September, the lowest month. Those are among 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 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pied Kingfisher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 67 parks where we can rate Pied Kingfisher sightings, Niokolo-Koba National Park ranks 2nd at about 70%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Liwonde National Park (Malawi, about 70%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Alcedinidae
The closest relatives of the Pied Kingfisher that you can see in Niokolo-Koba National Park (family Alcedinidae, Kingfishers) are Blue-breasted Kingfisher (about 60%), Giant Kingfisher (about 50%) and Gray-headed Kingfisher (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pied Kingfisher is recorded against all the birds logged in Niokolo-Koba National Park (348 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.
