Northern Wheatear
Northern WheatearNorthern WheatearNorthern WheatearNorthern Wheatear

Northern Wheatear

Oenanthe oenanthe

Silhouette: Charles J. Sharp · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Nairobi National Park
207 Verified sightings at Nairobi National Park From 2019 to 2026
13,377 Verified sightings across all 56 parks From 2019 to 2026
February Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Northern Wheatear

The northern wheatear or wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the wheatear genus Oenanthe in Europe and North and Central Asia. The northern wheatear is a migratory insectivorous species breeding in open stony country in Europe and east across the Palearctic with footholds in northeastern Canada and Greenland as well as in northwestern Canada and Alaska. It nests in rock crevices and rabbit burrows. All birds spend most of their winter in Africa.

The northern wheatear belongs to a distinctive group of Old World flycatchers, known as chats, that were formerly thought to be thrushes. Genetic analysis showed that they were in fact a type of flycatcher (Muscicapidae), with the resemblance to thrushes being the result of convergent evolution. The northern wheatear was first formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae as Motacilla oenanthe. The species is now placed in the genus Oenanthe that was introduced by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1816. The generic name, Oenanthe, is also the... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Nairobi National Park

Isabelline Wheatear
LC

Isabelline Wheatear

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Oenanthe isabellina

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Pied Wheatear
LC

Pied Wheatear

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Oenanthe pleschanka

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Capped Wheatear
LC

Capped Wheatear

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Oenanthe pileata

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
White-browed Scrub Robin

White-browed Scrub Robin

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Erythropygia leucophrys

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
African Gray Flycatcher
LC

African Gray Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Bradornis microrhynchus

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
Rüppell's Robin-Chat
LC

Rüppell's Robin-Chat

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Cossypha semirufa

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher

White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Dioptrornis fischeri

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
Spotted Morning-Thrush
LC

Spotted Morning-Thrush

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Cichladusa guttata

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
Spotted Flycatcher
LC

Spotted Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Muscicapa striata

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Southern Black Flycatcher
LC

Southern Black Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Melaenornis pammelaina

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Whinchat
LC

Whinchat

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Saxicola rubetra

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
African Dusky Flycatcher
LC

African Dusky Flycatcher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Muscicapa adusta

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Hohe Tauern National Park 🇦🇹 Austria
~40%
2 Vanoise National Park 🇫🇷 France
~40%
3 Aigüestortes National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
4 Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
5 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
6 Picos de Europa National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
7 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~20%
8 Ecrins National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
9 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
10 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
11 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~20%
12 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
13 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
14 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
15 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
16 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
17 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
18 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
19 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
20 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
21 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
22 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
23 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
24 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
25 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
26 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
27 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
28 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
29 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
30 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
31 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~10%
32 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
33 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~10%
34 Thingvellir National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~10%
35 Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park 🇲🇳 Mongolia
~10%
36 Triglav National Park 🇸🇮 Slovenia
~10%
37 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
38 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
<5%
39 Gauja National Park 🇱🇻 Latvia
<5%
40 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
41 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
42 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
43 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
44 Tatra National Park 🇸🇰 Slovakia
<5%
45 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
46 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
47 Denali National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
48 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
49 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
50 Bale Mountains National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
Insufficient data
51 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
52 Plitvice Lakes National Park 🇭🇷 Croatia
Insufficient data
53 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
Insufficient data
54 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
55 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
56 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Northern Wheatear in Nairobi National Park?

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Wheatear sighting in Nairobi National Park, based on 207 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Northern Wheatear in Nairobi National Park?

February has the highest sighting rate for Northern Wheatear in Nairobi National Park in our monthly data.

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