Passer eminibey
Silhouette: Andrew Butko (modified) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The chestnut sparrow (Passer eminibey) is a species of passerine bird in the sparrow family Passeridae. It is the smallest member of the sparrow family, at about 11 cm (4.3 in) long. The breeding male has deep chestnut plumage and the female and juvenile are coloured a duller grey with some chestnut markings. Like its closest relatives in the genus Passer, the Arabian golden sparrow and the Sudan golden sparrow, it is gregarious and found in arid areas. Ranging through the east of Africa from Darfur in Sudan to Tanzania, it is found in dry savanna, papyrus swamps, and near human habitation. Adults and juveniles both feed mostly on grass seeds, and fly in flocks, often with other species of birds, to find food. It nests in trees, building its own domed nests, and also usurping the more elaborate nests of weavers.
This species was first described in 1880, by Gustav Hartlaub in the Journal für Ornithologie, as Sorella Emini Bey. Hartlaub gave it the specific name Emini Bey in honour of the explorer Emin Pasha, who collected the type specimen in modern South Sudan or Uganda near Lado, and it is occasionally given the eponymous common name Emin Bey's sparrow... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 3 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 6 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 9 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 10 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 11 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 12 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 13 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 14 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut Sparrow sighting in Serengeti National Park on a given day, based on 324 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 141st most-seen of the 469 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.
December
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut Sparrow in Serengeti National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May to October, the lowest months. That is one of Serengeti National Park's wettest months, with about 110 mm of rain against 5 mm in July.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chestnut Sparrow sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 14
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Chestnut Sparrow sightings, Serengeti National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Samburu National Reserve (Kenya, about 30%) and Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 10%).
Same genus: Passer
The closest relatives of the Chestnut Sparrow that you can see in Serengeti National Park (genus Passer, True Sparrows) are Swahili Sparrow (about 30%), Kenya Rufous Sparrow (about 20%) and Northern Grey-headed Sparrow (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chestnut Sparrow is recorded against all the birds logged in Serengeti National Park (324 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.
