Bird Album
Plain-backed Pipit
Anthus leucophrys Vieillot, 1818
25 gWeight
The plain-backed pipit or plain pipit (Anthus leucophrys) is a medium-sized passerine bird which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara Desert.
Busiest months: July · Most records: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: July · Most records: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania
Plain-backed Pipit has been recorded at 299 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 27 countries and regions.
Records by month Southern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Lake Nakuru NPKenya430 records
- Maasai Mara NR – Mara TriangleKenya393 records
- Maasai Mara NRKenya294 records
More places
- Lake Mburo NPUganda272 records
- Queen Elizabeth II NP – Kasenyi TrackUganda172 records
- Ngorongoro Conservation Area – Ngorongoro CraterTanzania170 records
- Maasai Mara NR – Eastern SectionKenya168 records
- Rietvlei NRSouth Africa160 records
- Serengeti NPTanzania136 records
- Ol Pejeta ConservancyKenya124 records
Countries and regions with the most records
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 plain-backed pipit or plain pipit (Anthus leucophrys) is a medium-sized passerine bird which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara Desert.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Plain-backed Pipit?
The Plain-backed Pipit weighs around 25 g.
Where does the Plain-backed Pipit live?
Its breeding range: Africa: widespread. It is most often recorded in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
When is the best time to see the Plain-backed Pipit?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in July (Southern Hemisphere).
Is the Plain-backed Pipit endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Plain-backed Pipit as Least Concern.
What does the Plain-backed Pipit eat?
Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.
What family is the Plain-backed Pipit in?
It belongs to the family Wagtails, Pipits (Motacillidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).
At a glance
- Weight
- 25 g
- Habitat
- Grassland
- Diet
- Insects & other invertebrates
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 95 mm
- Tail
- 69 mm
- Bill
- 17 mm
- Tarsus
- 29 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Africa: widespread
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Passerines Passeriformes
- Family
- Wagtails, Pipits Motacillidae
- Genus
- Anthus
Other birds in the genus Anthus
Richard's PipitAnthus richardi
Paddyfield PipitAnthus rufulus
Australian PipitAnthus australis
New Zealand PipitAnthus novaeseelandiae
African PipitAnthus cinnamomeus
Mountain PipitAnthus hoeschi
Blyth's PipitAnthus godlewskii
Tawny PipitAnthus campestris
Long-billed PipitAnthus similis
Nicholson's PipitAnthus nicholsoni
Wood PipitAnthus nyassae
Buffy PipitAnthus vaalensis
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by samzhang. ↗
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