Rhaphidura sabini
Silhouette: Aviceda (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
Sabine's spinetail ( SAY-bin; Rhaphidura sabini, sometimes spelled Raphidura sabini) is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It is widespread across the African tropical rainforest. Its common name and Latin binomial commemorate General Sir Edward Sabine.
The Sabine's spinetail is a frugivore. Wikipedia →
Alarm call0:06
Uganda · 2012
© Wendy James · XC620058 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taï National Park | 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast | |
| 2 | Kibale National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 3 | Semuliki National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 4 | Queen Elizabeth National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 5 | Bwindi Impenetrable National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sabine's Spinetail sighting in Queen Elizabeth National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 418th most-seen of the 434 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sabine's Spinetail in Queen Elizabeth National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sabine's Spinetail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Sabine's Spinetail sightings, Queen Elizabeth National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Taï National Park (Ivory Coast, about 10%), Kibale National Park (Uganda, about 10%) and Semuliki National Park (Uganda, under 5%).
Same family: Apodidae
The closest relatives of the Sabine's Spinetail that you can see in Queen Elizabeth National Park (family Apodidae, Swifts) are White-rumped Swift (about 30%), Little Swift (about 20%) and African Palm-Swift (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sabine's Spinetail is recorded against all the birds logged in Queen Elizabeth National Park (6 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.
