Lanius humeralis
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The northern fiscal (Lanius humeralis) is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It used to be grouped with the southern fiscal (Lanius collaris). Together they were called the common fiscal. The fiscal gets its English and Afrikaans common names from its black and white 'suit-and-tie' appearance reminiscent of the taxman (‘fiscal’).
This is a fairly distinctive 21–23 cm long passerine with white underparts and black upperparts extending from the top of the head down to the tail. The bird has a characteristic white 'V' on the back and a relatively long black tail with white outer feathers and white tips on the other feathers. The bill, eyes and legs are black. Adult male and female northern fiscals are quite similar except for the rufous lower flank of the female. Wikipedia →
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Fiscal sighting in Serengeti National Park on a given day, based on 166 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 214th most-seen of the 469 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, April–May and July–November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Fiscal in Serengeti National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, June and December–January, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Fiscal sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
17th of 25
Of the 25 parks where we can rate Northern Fiscal sightings, Serengeti National Park ranks 17th at about 10%. The best odds are in Arusha National Park (Tanzania, about 60%), Nairobi National Park (Kenya, about 40%) and Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Lanius
The closest relatives of the Northern Fiscal that you can see in Serengeti National Park (genus Lanius, Typical Shrikes) are Grey-backed Fiscal (about 50%), Red-backed Shrike (about 10%) and Teita Fiscal (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Northern Fiscal is recorded against all the birds logged in Serengeti National Park (166 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.
