Turdoides striata
Silhouette: Jiekun He · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The jungle babbler (Argya striata) is a member of the family Leiothrichidae found in the Indian subcontinent. Jungle babblers are gregarious birds that forage in small groups of six to ten birds, a habit that has given them the popular name of "seven sisters" in urban Northern India, and (seven brothers) in Bengali, with cognates in other regional languages which also mean "seven brothers".
The jungle babbler is a common resident breeding bird in most parts of the Indian subcontinent and is often seen in gardens within large cities as well as in forested areas. In the past, the orange-billed babbler Argya rufescens of Sri Lanka was considered to be a subspecies of jungle babbler, but has now been elevated to a species.
The jungle babbler was described by the French zoologist Charles Dumont de Sainte Croix in 1823, based on specimens from Bengal. He coined the binomial name Cossyphus striatus. This babbler was formerly placed in the genus Turdoides but following the publication of a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study in 2018, it was moved to the resurrected genus Argya.
There are several named geographically isolated subspecies that show plumage shade differences... Wikipedia →
Recording0:24
India · 2021
© Ashitha. K. A · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:17
India · 2023
© Zach DuFran · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:30
India · 2024
© Ashwin A · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Gir National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 11 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 12 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 13 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 14 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 15 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 16 | Eravikulam National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 17 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 18 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Jungle Babbler sighting in Royal Manas National Park on a given day, based on 38 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 216th most-seen of the 388 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, June and October–December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Jungle Babbler in Royal Manas National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, March–May and July, the lowest months. August and September have too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Jungle Babbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
17th of 18
Of the 18 parks where we can rate Jungle Babbler sightings, Royal Manas National Park ranks 17th at under 5%. The best odds are in Keoladeo National Park (India, about 80%), Ranthambore National Park (India, about 80%) and Bandhavgarh National Park (India, about 70%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Leiothrichidae
The closest relatives of the Jungle Babbler that you can see in Royal Manas National Park (family Leiothrichidae, Laughingthrushes and Allies) are Rufous-necked Laughingthrush (about 30%), White-crested Laughingthrush (about 30%) and Rufous Sibia (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Jungle Babbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Royal Manas National Park (38 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.
