What do you think is the most difficult bird to see in the world? (1 Viewer)

[jurek]

Nechisar Nightjar is likely invalid. A number of searches, including at the exact place the corpse was found, failed to find them.

But Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa have a number of birds which are sometimes possible to see and sometimes the location is just too unsafe to visit. As well as a number of once-off seen bird mysteries from unsafe locations which were never seen again.

 

[Lietuvis Birder]

Nechisar Nightjar is likely invalid. A number of searches, including at the exact place the corpse was found, failed to find them.

But Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa have a number of birds which are sometimes possible to see and sometimes the location is just too unsafe to visit. As well as a number of once-off seen bird mysteries from unsafe locations which were never seen again.

Interesting! Like bird cryptids lol

 

[WalterRayle]

What is your vote for the most difficult bird to see in the world?

How about

- Inaccessible Island Rail?

There are few trips that provide a chance to visit the island, although once ashore the bird is reportedly quite common. The ‘Atlantic Odyssey’, arrives in April which is not a great time for a landing, as the sea is starting to get rougher, prohibiting a landing - I recall that on this voyage, they have only ever managed to land once - we didn’t, although we did get tantalisingly close and thought we were in luck until an expeditionary zodiac starting getting rolled around in the surf!
I asked a resident of Tristan da Cunha what we be the best option for a landing - he said take the monthly boat to Tristan da Cunha and stay for January (when the sea is calmest), then pay a local to take you across to Inaccessible Island to try a landing - the beach is super steep, so any swell or reasonable waves are a problem - you basically need a mill pond! So you need 1 month on Tristan da Cunha (and a few good books as there are very few birds on the Island), a super calm day and a local available and willing to try a landing when the stars align!

Looks like Galapagos Crake has just been 'unblocked'!

 

[jurek]

Interesting! Like bird cryptids lol

The book 'Birds of the Horn of Africa' has Red Sea Swallow, as well as a (probably) another swallow and a sunbird.

 

[temmie]

Aikiki is a good contender.

Nechisar Nightjar? I'd say a bird that we only know about because we found a dead one once is going to be pretty hard to spot.

On the upside if you do, you could make birding history.

Some random thoughts (and I see Jurek already asked the same question):
Is Nechisar Nightjar even a valid taxon?

I know of a guide arranging a private boat for Narcondam Hornbill April 2026.

Blue-eyed Ground-dove is off the radar for the unforeseen future, as the reserver will be closed for visitors for at least the next 2 years. Official statement from SAVE Brazil is coming soon.

There are several factors that make a bird hard: logistics (to even get to a certain place: altitude, walking or boat distance, safety, accessibility), how much targeted searching contributes to finding the bird (some species are very hard but the more you search, the more chance, other birds don't seem to have such a effort / chance of encounter correlation), rarity and thus overal chance of encountering maybe the last few examples of the bird, skulkiness, weather and distance (some birds are always in places with bad weather and / or only to be seen at large distance),...

Some hard birds I can think off:
Snow Mountain Robin (currently out of bounds, not allowed to go there), Afghan Snowfinch (not very safe to visit Afghanistan), Sulu Hornbill (not very safe, for decades with seemingly short 'safe' windows that only the very brave (or reckless) dare to use), Narcondam Hornbill and many other one-island endemics (mainly boat distance and sometimes accessibility / landing possibilities on the island), Red-billed Ground-cuckoo (far away from everything and still a very skulky bird), Maned Owl, some of the birds in isolated small mountain ranges in Papua, e.g. Foja Mountain birds such as Bronze Parotia, Sillem's Mountain Finch (altitude), some partridges and rails in SE Asia, Congo Peacock, Akikiki (a handful left and not at all easy to get in the right area), Yellow-crested Helmetshrike (refound, but the whole area seems unsafe again),... I can think of 100 more.

But there are so many birds that aren't even on the in-fashion-by-even-the-craziest-world-birders radar. E.g. who in this topic is thinking about targeting Jos Plateau Indigobird, Lufira Masked Weaver, Western Wattled Cuckooshrike or Niam Niam Parrot anytime soon? I know people who have seen the Weaver and Niam Niam Parrot, but those seem to be one-off occasions. Some of these birds (like the Weaver) aren't too difficult, it's about getting there. Maybe that's the same for the Parrot.
The Cuckooshrike is a bit complicated to get there (but doable), it's probably most of all a hard bird to connect onto, and I don't see anyone in the world birding scene mention this (imho stunning) bird once, while they do mention all the 'popular' goodies (I admit I do the same!). So I don't even know anyone who has tried to see the Cuckooshrike or will try to do so in the near future. That Indigobird... Who wants to go to central Nigeria or N-Cameroon these days? Maybe it isn't even hard to get there or to find the bird, but who besides the locals is seeing those birds?

 

[Frenchy]

But there are so many birds that aren't even on the in-fashion-by-even-the-craziest-world-birders radar. E.g. who in this topic is thinking about targeting Jos Plateau Indigobird, Lufira Masked Weaver, Western Wattled Cuckooshrike or Niam Niam Parrot anytime soon? I know people who have seen the Weaver and Niam Niam Parrot, but those seem to be one-off occasions. Some of these birds (like the Weaver) aren't too difficult, it's about getting there. Maybe that's the same for the Parrot.
The Cuckooshrike is a bit complicated to get there (but doable), it's probably most of all a hard bird to connect onto, and I don't see anyone in the world birding scene mention this (imho stunning) bird once, while they do mention all the 'popular' goodies (I admit I do the same!). So I don't even know anyone who has tried to see the Cuckooshrike or will try to do so in the near future. That Indigobird... Who wants to go to central Nigeria or N-Cameroon these days? Maybe it isn't even hard to get there or to find the bird, but who besides the locals is seeing those birds?

To add some Sahelian/Saharan species, Kordofan Rufous Sparrow (SW Sudan/Darfur region and E Chad, two obs on eBird), Kordofan Lark and Rusty Lark (seemingly both with large ranges on southern edge of Sahara but micro-habitat restricted, and one and zero records on eBird respectively). Combined with a chance of Nubian Bustard, that central Sahel has a handful of World blockers. Unlike many other species, there are no real sites for these, you just have to go searching. Spoke to Calen Cohen about them last year, he dipped on a trip there so seems that more work is needed...

The larks may be the most (allegedly) widespread species with the fewest sightings...???

 

[temmie]

To add some Sahelian/Saharan species, Kordofan Rufous Sparrow (SW Sudan/Darfur region and E Chad, two obs on eBird), Kordofan Lark and Rusty Lark (seemingly both with large ranges on southern edge of Sahara but micro-habitat restricted, and one and zero records on eBird respectively). Combined with a chance of Nubian Bustard, that central Sahel has a handful of World blockers. Unlike many other species, there are no real sites for these, you just have to go searching. Spoke to Calen Cohen about them last year, he dipped on a trip there so seems that more work is needed...

The larks may be the most (allegedly) widespread species with the fewest sightings...???

Kordofan Lark is a real possibility. While it's not on my 'planning' radar, Abdoulie Ndure (Gambian guide) seems to have worked out a battle plan and seems confident there is a good chance to find the Lark in the red sands of Southern Mauretania. The trip would involve starting from Senegal (e.g. Dakar), drive up North and cross the border with Mauretania. The trip should be done in Summer (somewhere between June and September I thought), which Abdoulie describes as the season those larks are there (breeding, presumably). I now just have to find someone who is doing the trip (successfully), and I'm sure many will repeat if one trip scores the Lark.
I know Callan Cohen has seen Niam-Niam Parrot (I thought in Chad), but I don't know whether it was significantly safer back then (it was less than 10 years ago), and I honestly don't know if it is less safe now...!

Thanks for mentioning Kordofan Rufous Sparrow and Rusty Lark: I didn't even know about those 2 species, and those are exactly what I would describe as 'under the radar' birds. Maybe, the hardest bird to see, is one we just forget about, or the one (of a few) we haven't discovered yet...

 

[temmie]

Nechisar Nightjar is likely invalid. A number of searches, including at the exact place the corpse was found, failed to find them.

But Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa have a number of birds which are sometimes possible to see and sometimes the location is just too unsafe to visit. As well as a number of once-off seen bird mysteries from unsafe locations which were never seen again.

here you go about Nechisar Nightjar:

Genetic and morphological analysis shows the Nechisar Nightjar is a hybrid

The Nechisar Nightjar Caprimulgus solala was described only from a single wing collected as roadkill from Nechisar National Park in Ethiopia in 1990. To resolve its taxonomic status a sample was taken from the Nechisar Nightjar holotype and 53 other Afrotropical nightjars, and genomic DNA...

www.biorxiv.org

Ps: I always had serious doubts about the story once posted by Ian Sinclair et al. (that they saw one somewhere in the 2010s). They didn't have a photograph but saw the bird long enough / well enough, they claimed... I was on the Nechisar plains in 2009 and spent 2 nights driving around and scanning the plains with a big torch. We got zillions of nightjars but ofcourse none looking like a Nechisar.
They even wrote a book about their adventures, but don't ask me if it's fiction or not: The Rarest Bird in the World: The Search for the Nechisar Nightjar

 

[Paul Chapman]

here you go about Nechisar Nightjar:

Genetic and morphological analysis shows the Nechisar Nightjar is a hybrid

The Nechisar Nightjar Caprimulgus solala was described only from a single wing collected as roadkill from Nechisar National Park in Ethiopia in 1990. To resolve its taxonomic status a sample was taken from the Nechisar Nightjar holotype and 53 other Afrotropical nightjars, and genomic DNA...

www.biorxiv.org

Ps: I always had serious doubts about the story once posted by Ian Sinclair et al. (that they saw one somewhere in the 2010s). They didn't have a photograph but saw the bird long enough / well enough, they claimed... I was on the Nechisar plains in 2009 and spent 2 nights driving around and scanning the plains with a big torch. We got zillions of nightjars but ofcourse none looking like a Nechisar.
They even wrote a book about their adventures, but don't ask me if it's fiction or not: The Rarest Bird in the World: The Search for the Nechisar Nightjar

A hybrid conclusion seems a bit bold to me. But amused to see this paper co-authored by Martin Collinson who overlapped at Cambridge with the guys who found the original wing. 😀

All the best

Paul

 

[DMW]

A hybrid conclusion seems a bit bold to me.

Can I ask why? It would seem to me one of the least surprising ornithological (non)-discoveries in recent decades.

 

[Paul Chapman]

Can I ask why? It would seem to me one of the least surprising ornithological (non)-discoveries in recent decades.

I find DNA sequencing all a bit baffling.

But a conclusion that it is a hybrid between one species & another unknown but presumed already described unsequenced species seems no more probable than it could be a different species to me at the moment.

My recollection of conversations with those that found the wing is over three decades old now. I should Google it before commenting especially after no sleep on an overnight flight. 😀

My perception of DNA sequencing is probably soured by a few slips & misses over the years & also probably coloured by many happy memories of my undergraduate days twitching and drinking with Martin & the other Cambridge individuals that found the wing. Martin and I were at Fitzwilliam together. 🍺

I probably should be more open-minded to hybrids after such well known reclassifications as Cox's Sandpiper & on ranges a Standard-winged Nightjar (female) * Freckled Nightjar (male) hybrid is credible.

All the best

Paul

 

[DMW]

I too am clueless when it comes to analysis DNA - I wondered if your comment was based on doubt of the analysis or some other factor. I personally think it was quite brave to describe a new nightjar species from a single wing. Open-country nightjars are generally quite easily-detected (far-carrying song), so the lack of any hint of a different nightjar song in the region doesn't bode well.

 

[Paul Chapman]

I too am clueless when it comes to analysis DNA - I wondered if your comment was based on doubt of the analysis or some other factor. I personally think it was quite brave to describe a new nightjar species from a single wing. Open-country nightjars are generally quite easily-detected (far-carrying song), so the lack of any hint of a different nightjar song in the region doesn't bode well.

Maybe but a thorough job by good scientists and birders:-

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1474-919X.1995.tb08025.x

No shame if it turns out to be a first documented hybrid.

All the best

Paul

 

[James Lowther]

A hybrid conclusion seems a bit bold to me.

The mtDNA sequencing seems pretty clear cut that the bird's mother was either a standard-winged or very closely related.

The nuclear DNA analysis looks a bit more shaky, as all species are seemingly very similar across the 3 genes sequenced. However the fact that in all 3 cases one of the two copies of the gene matched standard-winged most closely, while the other copy didn't, looks consistent with the bird being a hybrid.

If this bird was a distinct (and presumably rare) species i think you would expect
a) the mtDNA to be more distinct
b) the two copies of each nuclear gene to be more similar to each other

I guess the flipside is to ask whether the combined information (partial specimen, lack of physical records, discouraging DNA sequencing results) is enough to justify maintenance as a species

cheers,
James

 

[DMW]

I guess the flipside is to ask whether the combined information (partial specimen, lack of physical records, discouraging DNA sequencing results) is enough to justify maintenance as a species

I suppose the test is: if the results of DNA sequencing were available to the authors at the time of publication, would they have gone ahead and proposed it as a new species, and would the proposal have been accepted by any taxonomic authority?
If the answer is no, then it should be deleted.

 

[Frank van Drogen]

A hybrid conclusion seems a bit bold to me. But amused to see this paper co-authored by Martin Collinson who overlapped at Cambridge with the guys who found the original wing. 😀

All the best

Paul

The hybrid hypothesis seems rather plausible to me, but is hard to substantiate without getting the necessary sequencing data from the paternal line. Feels like the manuscript is only half a story -- I am not sure why they don't wait with submitting until it is actually complete.

 

[temmie]

The hybrid hypothesis seems rather plausible to me, but is hard to substantiate without getting the necessary sequencing data from the paternal line. Feels like the manuscript is only half a story -- I am not sure why they don't wait with submitting until it is actually complete.

I think the paper is written 'at home', i.e. in the country where they have the specimen (the wing), and any DNA from the paternal line would inevitably involve a field expedition, permits and thus they'd be easily a year and quite a lot of money further down the line.

 

[Paul Chapman]

I think the paper is written 'at home', i.e. in the country where they have the specimen (the wing), and any DNA from the paternal line would inevitably involve a field expedition, permits and thus they'd be easily a year and quite a lot of money further down the line.

I was left wondering about how many unsequenced paternal parent nightjar species there could be but noted that the paper was currently pre peer review. This may be answered in the full paper. I generally just thought that it was an interesting update though now consider that the hybrid outcome seems the likely conclusion following the contributions here. 👍

All the best

Paul

 

[James Lowther]

I was left wondering about how many unsequenced paternal parent nightjar species there could be but noted that the paper was currently pre peer review. This may be answered in the full paper.

As far as i can make out all the nuclear sequence was generated de novo in this study, they generated sequence for at least 1 out of the 3 genes for 22 out of 26 Afrotropical species (including Nechisar). Prigogine's was not tested, nuclear genes of Brown, Swamp and Freckled were not successfully sequenced. But, only half of the 22 species that were successfully sequenced, were successfully sequenced in all 3 genes. I guess along with the very high homogeneity in the 3 sequenced genes this further confuses matters re: identification of the paternal species.

See Table 4.

cheers,
James

 

[Mysticete]

The hybrid hypothesis seems rather plausible to me, but is hard to substantiate without getting the necessary sequencing data from the paternal line. Feels like the manuscript is only half a story -- I am not sure why they don't wait with submitting until it is actually complete.

I don't know any researcher who didn't wish for more samples or wished they couldn't run more analyses. Unfortunately, sometimes you just have to publish what you have, rather than hold off in the eventual case you can add a bit more, especially if the current data already tells a compelling story. Funds and permitting run out, collaborations fall through, other projects pull from your attention, and personnel move on. Trust me, I know multiple researchers who did hold off, and twenty years later they still haven't published.