Zosterops simplex
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
Swinhoe's white-eye (Zosterops simplex) is a bird species in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is found in eastern China, Taiwan, north Vietnam, the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. Additionally, populations have also been introduced to Southern California, where their population has been expanding rapidly.
Swinhoe's white-eye was formally described in 1861 by the English naturalist Robert Swinhoe, who assigned it the binomial name Zosterops simplex. The genus Zosterops had been introduced by the naturalists Nicholas Vigors and Thomas Horsfield in 1827. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek words zōstēros meaning "belt" or "girdle" and ōpos meaning "eye". The specific epithet simplex is Latin meaning "simple" or "plain".
This species was previously considered a subspecies group of the Japanese white-eye (Zosterops japonicus), but based on the results of a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2018, it was elevated it to full species status.
Five subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 2 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 3 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 4 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 5 | Jiuzhaigou National Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 6 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hanoi | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 2 | Taichung | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 3 | Zhuhai [Macau] | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 5 | Kaohsiung | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 6 | Xiamen City | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 7 | Taipei | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 8 | Guangzhou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 9 | Shantou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 10 | Fuzhou | 🇨🇳 China |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leofoo Village Theme Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 2 | Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Edward Youde Aviary | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China | |
| 4 | Reptile House | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Swinhoe’s White-eye sighting in Taroko National Park on a given day, based on 630 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 26th most-seen of the 147 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and November
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Swinhoe’s White-eye in Taroko National Park on a given day, against about 10% in August, the lowest month.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Swinhoe’s White-eye sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Yes
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Swinhoe’s White-eye sightings, Taroko National Park has the highest daily chance: about 30%. Next come Doi Inthanon National Park (Thailand, about 10%) and Cuc Phuong National Park (Vietnam, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Swinhoe’s White-eye is recorded against all the birds logged in Taroko National Park (630 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.
