Cossypha natalensis
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The red-capped robin-chat or Natal robin (Cossypha natalensis) is a species of passerine bird belonging to the family Muscicapidae. This species is found in central and eastern Sub-Saharan Africa. The red-capped robin-chat was first formally described in 1840 by the Scottish zoologist and physician Andrew Smith with its type locality given as near Port Natal in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. This species is a member of the genus Cossypha which is classified within the subfamily Erithacinae of the large passerine family Muscicapidae, the chats and Old World flycatchers. However, it has been argued that the name of this clade should be Cossyphinae, as this was proposed by Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825 and so predates Gray's 1846 Erithacinae.
The red-capped robin-chat is a polytypic species with 3 subspecies: Cossypha natalensis natalensis (Smith, 1840) - eastern South Africa (Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal) Cossypha natalensis larischi Meise, 1958 - Nigeria to northern Angola
Cossypha natalensis intensa Mearns, 1913 - southeastern Central African Republic, South Sudan, southwestern Ethiopia, and southern Somalia south to Southern Africa. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kibale National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 4 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 6 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Akagera National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 8 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 9 | Bwindi Impenetrable National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 10 | Virunga National Park | 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
| 11 | Gorongosa National Park | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 12 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 13 | Volcanoes National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 14 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 15 | Nyungwe National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 16 | Queen Elizabeth National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 17 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 18 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 19 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 20 | Lake Mburo National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Redcap Robinchat 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.
June, August and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Redcap Robinchat in Virunga National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July, September–October and December–May, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Redcap Robinchat sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 20
Of the 20 parks where we can rate Redcap Robinchat sightings, Virunga National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in iSimangaliso Wetland Park (South Africa, about 50%), Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (South Africa, about 20%) and Kibale National Park (Uganda, about 10%).
Same genus: Cossypha
The closest relatives of the Redcap Robinchat that you can see in Virunga National Park (genus Cossypha, Typical Robin-Chats) are White-browed Robin-Chat (about 20%), Cape Robin-Chat (about 20%) and Archer's Robin-Chat (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Redcap Robinchat 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.
