Passer melanurus
Silhouette: Andrew Butko (modified) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The Cape sparrow (Passer melanurus), or mossie, is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae found in southern Africa. A medium-sized sparrow at 14–16 centimetres (5.5–6.3 in), it has distinctive plumage, including large pale head stripes in both sexes. Its plumage is mostly grey, brown, and chestnut, and the male has some bold black and white markings on its head and neck. The species inhabits semi-arid savannah, cultivated areas, and towns, and ranges from the central coast of Angola to eastern South Africa and Eswatini. Three subspecies are distinguished in different parts of its range.
Cape sparrows primarily eat seeds, and also eat soft plant parts and insects. They typically breed in colonies, and when not breeding they gather in large nomadic flocks to move around in search of food. The nest can be constructed in a tree, a bush, a cavity, or a disused nest of another species. A typical clutch contains three or four eggs, and both parents are involved in breeding, from nest building to feeding young. The Cape sparrow is common in most of its range and coexists successfully in urban habitats with two of its relatives, the native southern grey-headed sparrow and the house sparrow, an introduced species. The Cape sparrow's population has not been recorded decreasing significantly, and it is not seriously threatened by human activities, so it is assessed as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Namib-Naukluft National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 2 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 6 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 9 | Golden Gate Highlands National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 10 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 11 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 12 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Cape Sparrow sighting in West Coast National Park on a given day, based on 922 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 28th most-seen of the 192 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.
March–April and September–October
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Cape Sparrow in West Coast National Park on a given day, against about 30% in December, the lowest month.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cape Sparrow sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 12
Of the 12 parks where we can rate Cape Sparrow sightings, West Coast National Park ranks 2nd at about 60%. The best odds are in Namib-Naukluft National Park (Namibia, about 80%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cape Sparrow is recorded against all the birds logged in West Coast National Park (922 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.
