Bradornis pallidus
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The pale flycatcher (Agricola pallidus) is a passerine bird of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae, native to Sub-Saharan Africa. The pale flycatcher was previously placed in the genus Bradornis but was moved to Melaenornis based on the results of a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2010. It was subsequently moved to the genus Agricola based on a study published in 2023.
It is widely present across Sub-Saharan Africa, although absent in the Congo Basin and Southern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, dry savanna, and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Pale flycatcher - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Wikipedia →
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pale Flycatcher sighting in Virunga National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 209th most-seen of the 316 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Pale Flycatcher in Virunga National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January to November, the lowest months. That is one of Virunga National Park's driest months, with about 80 mm of rain against 250 mm in May.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pale Flycatcher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
16th of 32
Of the 32 parks where we can rate Pale Flycatcher sightings, Virunga National Park ranks 16th at under 5%. The best odds are in Kidepo Valley National Park (Uganda, about 30%), uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, about 20%) and Akagera National Park (Rwanda, about 20%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Pale Flycatcher that you can see in Virunga National Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are White-browed Robin-Chat (about 20%), White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher (about 20%) and African Dusky Flycatcher (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pale Flycatcher is recorded against all the birds logged in Virunga National Park (15 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.
