Capped Wheatear

Oenanthe pileata

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
FamilyMuscicapidae (Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats)
GenusOenanthe (Wheatears and Allies)
SpeciesOenanthe pileata (Capped Wheatear)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Golden Gate Highlands National Park

3 Verified sightings at Golden Gate Highlands National Park From 2019 to 2026

2,525 Verified sightings across all 36 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Capped Wheatear

The capped wheatear (Oenanthe pileata) is a small insectivorous passerine bird that is widely distributed over southern Africa. It was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now placed in the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae.

The capped wheatear was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the wagtails in the genus Motacilla and coined the binomial name Motacilla pileata. The specific epithet is from Latin pileatus meaning "-capped". Gmelin based his account on the "Black-hooded wheat-ear" that had been described in 1783 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham's specimen had been collected near the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. The capped wheatear is now placed in the genus Oenanthe that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot.

Three subspecies are recognised: O. p. neseri Macdonald, 1952 – south Angola, Namibia, west Botswana and northwest South Africa O. p. livingstonii (Tristram, 1868) – central Kenya to northeast... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Oenanthe familiaris

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely

Oenanthe monticola

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Saxicola torquatus

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely

Monticola rupestris

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely

Campicoloides bifasciatus

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Myrmecocichla formicivora

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Monticola explorator

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Sigelus silens

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Monticola brevipes

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Emarginata sinuata

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Erythropygia leucophrys

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

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	Daily sighting probability
1	Ngorongoro Conservation Area	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~30%
2	Hwange National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	~20%
3	Pilanesberg National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~10%
4	Etosha National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	~10%
5	Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~10%
6	Serengeti National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~10%
7	Mikumi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~10%
8	Kafue National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	~10%
9	Amboseli National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	~10%
10	Masai Mara National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
11	Nairobi National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
12	Chobe National Park	🇧🇼 Botswana	<5%
13	Addo Elephant National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
14	Tsavo West National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
15	Tsavo East National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
16	Moremi Game Reserve	🇧🇼 Botswana	<5%
17	iSimangaliso Wetland Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
18	Lake Nakuru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
19	Tarangire National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	<5%
20	Kruger National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
21	Waterberg Plateau Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	Insufficient data
22	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
23	Golden Gate Highlands National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
24	Table Mountain National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
25	Gorongosa National Park	🇲🇿 Mozambique	Insufficient data
26	Gonarezhou National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	Insufficient data
27	Mkomazi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	Insufficient data
28	Aberdare National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	Insufficient data
29	South Luangwa National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	Insufficient data
30	Liwonde National Park	🇲🇼 Malawi	Insufficient data
31	Akagera National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	Insufficient data
32	Arusha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	Insufficient data
33	Samburu National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	Insufficient data
34	Lake Manyara National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	Insufficient data
35	Namib-Naukluft National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	Insufficient data
36	Queen Elizabeth National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	Insufficient data

← Back to Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Capped Wheatear

About the Capped Wheatear

Closest Relatives at Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Familiar Chat

Mountain Chat

African Stonechat

Cape Rockthrush

Buff-streaked Bushchat

Southern Anteater-Chat

Sentinel Rock-Thrush

Mocking Cliff Chat

Fiscal Flycatcher

Short-toed Rock-Thrush

Sickle-winged Chat

White-browed Scrub Robin

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found