Blue-naped Mousebird
Urocolius macrourus
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderColiiformes (Mousebirds)
- FamilyColiidae (Mousebirds)
- GenusUrocolius (Red-billed Mousebirds)
- SpeciesUrocolius macrourus (Blue-naped Mousebird)
About the Blue-naped Mousebird
The blue-naped mousebird (Urocolius macrourus), also formerly called the blue-naped coly (Colius macrourus) is a species of bird belonging to the family Coliidae within the order Coliiformes. They are the sister group to the clade Eucavitaves, which contains the families Leptosomiformes (the cuckoo roller), Trogoniformes (trogons), Bucerotiformes (hornbills and hoopoes), Piciformes (woodpeckers, toucans, and barbets) and Coraciformes (kingfishers, bee-eaters, rollers, motmots, and todies).
The species is found in the wild in the drier regions of West Africa to East Africa, as well as Sahel. It is one of the remaining six species of mousebirds. The term "mousebird" comes from its habit of running along branches in a way that resembles the scurrying of a mouse.
There are a total of six recognized subspecies: Urocolius macrourus macrourus (Distribution: Senegambia to east Ethiopia) Urocolius macrourus syntactus (Distribution: Sahel from Mali, southern Niger, and northern Nigeria east to Sudan, Eritrea, and northern Ethiopia)
Urocolius macrourus laeneni (Distribution: Aïr Massif, in NC Niger.) Urocolius macrourus pulcher (Distribution: extreme South East South Sudan, Eastern... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Blue-naped Mousebird in Aberdare National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Aberdare National Park
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Blue-naped Mousebird in Aberdare National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-naped Mousebird sighting in Aberdare National Park, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Blue-naped Mousebird in Aberdare National Park?
February has the highest sighting rate for Blue-naped Mousebird in Aberdare National Park in our monthly data.