Blackstart
Oenanthe melanura
The blackstart (Oenanthe melanura) is a chat found in desert regions in North Africa, the Middle East and the Arabian Peninsula. It is resident throughout its range. The blackstart is 14 cm (5.5 in) long and is named for its black tail, which is frequently fanned; the rest of its plumage is bluish-grey or grey-brown (North African races being browner, Middle Eastern races bluer). The sexes are similar. The song is a clear melancholy whistle: CHURlee...TRUloo...CHURlee...TRUlur..., with short phrases from the song used as a call. The habitats of blackstarts are rocky deserts and mountain slopes; they nest in rock crevices lay 3–4 eggs. Wikipedia →
20–30% of wildlife watchers report a Blackstart sighting in Awash National Park, based on 24 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Blackstart in Awash National Park?
About 21% of wildlife watchers report a Blackstart sighting in Awash National Park, based on 24 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Blackstart in Awash National Park?
January has the highest sighting rate for Blackstart in Awash National Park in our monthly data.