Red-faced Crimson-wing

Red-faced Crimson-wing

Cryptospiza reichenovii

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Volcanoes National Park

In 3 days ~10%

8 Verified sightings at Volcanoes National Park From 2019 to 2026
63 In all 2 parks
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Red-faced Crimson-wing

The red-faced crimsonwing (Cryptospiza reichenovii) is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 390,000 km2. It is native to subsaharan mountainous regions : Bioko and the Western High Plateau, the Albertine Rift montane forests and east Africa (from northern Tanzania to eastern Zimbabwe).

The red-faced crimsonwing was formally described in 1874 by the German ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub based on a female specimen that had been collected by Anton Reichenow near Bondongo (Bonjongo) in west Cameroon, West Africa. Hartlaub coined the binomial name Pytelia reichenovii where the specific epithet was chosen to honour the collector. The red-faced crimsonwing is now one of four species placed in the genus Cryptospiza that was introduced in 1884 by the Italian zoologist Tommaso Salvadori.

Three subspecies are recognised: ��2... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:17

Zimbabwe · 2024

© Dries Van de Loock · XC962467 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:13

Tanzania · 2019

© Peter Boesman · XC510120 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:20

Tanzania · 2019

© Louis A. Hansen · XC517371 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
2 Volcanoes National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Red-faced Crimson-wing in Volcanoes National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Red-faced Crimson-wing sighting in Volcanoes National Park on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 130th most-seen of the 156 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Red-faced Crimson-wing in Volcanoes National Park?

July

In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Red-faced Crimson-wing in Volcanoes National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months. That is one of Volcanoes National Park's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain against 250 mm in April.

What time of day is best to see a Red-faced Crimson-wing?

Between 6 and 9 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red-faced Crimson-wing sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Volcanoes National Park the best place to see a Red-faced Crimson-wing?

Among the best

Of the 2 parks where we can rate Red-faced Crimson-wing sightings, Volcanoes National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Nyungwe National Park (Rwanda, under 5%).

Where does the Red-faced Crimson-wing sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Red-faced Crimson-wing is recorded against all the birds logged in Volcanoes National Park (8 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.

← Back to Volcanoes National Park