Erythropygia leucophrys
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The white-browed scrub robin (Cercotrichas leucophrys), also known as the red-backed scrub-robin, is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa, especially East and southern Africa. Within range, its Turdus-like song is one of the often-heard sounds of the bush. The flitting of the tail is characteristic of this species, but also of some near relatives.
Louis Pierre Vieillot described the white-browed scrub robin in 1817. The specific epithet is derived from the Ancient Greek words leukos "white" and ǒphrys "eyebrow". For the white-browed scrub robin, some 9 to 12 subspecies are recognized: Two groups of subspecies are recognised, namely the 'white-winged' group of arid country, and the 'red-backed' group of mesic to moist habitats. Intergradation between these is apparently limited to subspecies brunneiceps and vulpina around Simba, Kenya. Otherwise the variation is clinal, though the extremes may be quite distinct. Wikipedia →
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Botswana · 2020
© Dewald du Plessis · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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South Africa · 2021
© Lukas Lindenthal · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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Zimbabwe · 2026
© i_c_riddell · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-browed Scrub Robin sighting in South Luangwa National Park on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 176th most-seen of the 257 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April, October and December–January
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-browed Scrub Robin in South Luangwa National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February–March, May–September and November, the lowest months. Those are among South Luangwa National Park's wettest months, with about 150 mm of rain a month against almost none in September.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-browed Scrub Robin sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
38th of 42
Of the 42 parks where we can rate White-browed Scrub Robin sightings, South Luangwa National Park ranks 38th at under 5%. The best odds are in Waterberg Plateau Park (Namibia, about 50%), uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, about 40%) and Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the White-browed Scrub Robin that you can see in South Luangwa National Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are White-browed Robin-Chat (about 40%), Ashy Alseonax (about 10%) and Southern Black Flycatcher (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-browed Scrub Robin is recorded against all the birds logged in South Luangwa National Park (24 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.
