Besra (Tachyspiza virgata)
Illustration redrawn by AI from a real photograph

Besra

Tachyspiza virgata (Temminck, 1822)

It resembles a darker Chinese Sparrowhawk, with darker upperparts and a broader throat marking.

Busiest months: October · Most records: China, Thailand, India

How to identify

Field marks

  1. Adult male upperparts dark blue-gray
  2. Adult male underparts white with rufous stripes
  3. Tail has 3–4 equally sized dark bars
  4. Wings short and broad, tail long

Male, female and young

Female larger than male, with more rufous upperparts; juvenile upperparts dark brown, underparts white with rufous stripes.

Where and when it's recorded

Besra has been recorded at 760 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 16 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. Kenting NP – Sheding Lingxiao Pavilion (Raptors Observation Spot)Taiwan (China)971 records
  2. Taipei – Tianliaoyang WetlandTaiwan (China)656 records
  3. Taichung – Taichung Metropolitan ParkTaiwan (China)551 records
More places
  1. Mai Po Nature ReserveHong Kong (China)390 records
  2. Long ValleyHong Kong (China)261 records
  3. Khao Dinsor (Khao Dinso) / Chumphon Raptor CenterThailand229 records
  4. Kinmen – Doumen Hiking TrailChina204 records
  5. Kinmen – Lieyu Mountain QilinChina182 records
  6. Kinmen – Botanical GardenChina171 records
  7. Taipei – Beitou Guizikeng Drainage CanalTaiwan (China)161 records

Countries and regions with the most records

ChinaThailandIndiaSri LankaPhilippinesNepalCambodiaMalaysia

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The besra (Tachyspiza virgata), also called the besra sparrowhawk, is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was formerly placed in the genus Accipiter. The name "besra" is from the Hindi word for the species.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

Where does the Besra live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: widespread. It is most often recorded in China, Thailand and India.

When is the best time to see the Besra?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in October (Northern Hemisphere).

What family is the Besra in?

It belongs to the family Kites, Hawks, Eagles (Accipitridae), order Accipitriformes.

Range

Oriental: widespread

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 2
  • Tachyspiza virgata affinis w Himalayas to c China and Indochina | non-breeding: to Malay Pen.
  • Tachyspiza virgata fuscipectus Taiwan (China)

Classification

Family
Kites, Hawks, Eagles Accipitridae
Genus
Tachyspiza

Other birds in the genus Tachyspiza

Red-thighed SparrowhawkRed-thighed SparrowhawkTachyspiza erythropusLittle SparrowhawkLittle SparrowhawkTachyspiza minullaDwarf SparrowhawkDwarf SparrowhawkTachyspiza nanusRufous-necked SparrowhawkRufous-necked SparrowhawkTachyspiza erythrauchenCollared SparrowhawkCollared SparrowhawkTachyspiza cirrocephalaNew Britain SparrowhawkNew Britain SparrowhawkTachyspiza brachyuraVinous-breasted SparrowhawkVinous-breasted SparrowhawkTachyspiza rhodogasterJapanese SparrowhawkJapanese SparrowhawkTachyspiza gularisLevant SparrowhawkLevant SparrowhawkTachyspiza brevipesShikraShikraTachyspiza badiaNicobar SparrowhawkNicobar SparrowhawkTachyspiza butleriChinese SparrowhawkChinese SparrowhawkTachyspiza soloensis
Besra

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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Cbs Chen. ↗

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