Abyssinian Crimson-wing

Abyssinian Crimson-wing

Cryptospiza salvadorii

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Nyungwe National Park

In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%

11 Verified sightings at Nyungwe National Park From 2019 to 2026
112 In all 5 parks
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Abyssinian Crimson-wing

The Abyssinian crimsonwing (Cryptospiza salvadorii), also known as the Ethiopian crimsonwing, Salvadori's crimsonwing or crimson-backed forest finch, is a common species of estrildid finch found in eastern Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 190,000 km2 (73,000 mi2).

The Abyssinian crimsonwing is a small, shy greyish olive finch with bright crimson wings, mantle, back and rump. It is sexually dimorphic. In the males the head and upper mantle are greyish olive apart from the blackish lores, while the rest of the upper parts, except for the short, rounded, black tail, are deep crimson. The chin is dull yellow and the rest of the underparts are greyish-olive, with some flank feathers having red tips. The bill is black, and the eyes and legs are dark brown. The females is similar to the male, but duller red above and pale olive below. The juveniles are browner above with only patches of red colour. It measures 10–11 cm (3.9–4.3 in) in length and weighs 10.9–14 g (0.38–0.49 oz).

The call of the Abyssinian crimsonwing is a soft "tsip-tsip" which is given when the bird is flushed. The song is the call repeated but with a soft melodic sub... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:53

Kenya · 2020

© James Bradley · XC536423 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bale Mountains National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~10%
2 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
3 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
4 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
5 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Abyssinian Crimson-wing in Nyungwe National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Crimson-wing sighting in Nyungwe National Park on a given day, based on 11 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 201st most-seen of the 252 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Abyssinian Crimson-wing in Nyungwe National Park?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Abyssinian Crimson-wing in Nyungwe National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see an Abyssinian Crimson-wing?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Abyssinian Crimson-wing sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Where does the Abyssinian Crimson-wing sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Abyssinian Crimson-wing is recorded against all the birds logged in Nyungwe National Park (11 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.

← Back to Nyungwe National Park