Andropadus importunus
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The sombre greenbul (Andropadus importunus) is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is a resident breeder in coastal bush, evergreen forest and dry shrub land in eastern and southern Africa. It is the only member of the genus Andropadus.
Eighteen species of greenbuls originally described in the genus Andropadus were re-classified to the genera Arizelocichla, Stelgidillas and Eurillas in 2010. This has left Andropadus as a monotypic genus with the sombre greenbul remaining as its sole extant species.
The sombre greenbul was originally described in the genus Turdus and was later re-classified to the genus Andropadus. Alternatively, some authorities classify the sombre greenbul in the genus Pycnonotus. Alternate names for the sombre greenbul include the sombre bulbul, southern sombre bulbul and southern sombre greenbul.
Includes Frick's greenbul which was also originally described as a separate species. Found from southern Ethiopia and southern Somalia to eastern... Wikipedia →
Song0:37
South Africa · 2026
© JJSUN · XC1078356 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Duet0:10
Kenya · 2025
© Louis A. Hansen · XC1068036 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Recording0:13
South Africa · 2025
© Craig Peter · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Gorongosa National Park | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 6 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 9 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 10 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 11 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 12 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 13 | Mikumi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 14 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 15 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 16 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 17 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 18 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 19 | Lower Zambezi National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 20 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mombasa | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Zanzibar City | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Dar es-Salaam | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Sombre Greenbul sighting in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, based on 420 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 12th most-seen of the 283 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October
In that month about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Sombre Greenbul in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, against about 40% in February and December, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sombre Greenbul sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 20 parks where we can rate Sombre Greenbul sightings, uMkhuze Game Reserve ranks 2nd at about 60%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Garden Route National Park (South Africa, about 60%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Pycnonotidae
The closest relatives of the Sombre Greenbul that you can see in uMkhuze Game Reserve (family Pycnonotidae, Bulbuls) are Common Bulbul (about 80%), Yellow-bellied Greenbul (about 50%) and Terrestrial Brownbul (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sombre Greenbul is recorded against all the birds logged in uMkhuze Game Reserve (420 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.
