Large Elaenia

Large Elaenia

Elaenia spectabilis

Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Amacayacu National Natural Park

In 3 days ~10%

14 Verified sightings at Amacayacu National Natural Park From 2019 to 2026
1,058 In all 12 parks
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Large Elaenia

The large elaenia (Elaenia spectabilis) is a species of bird in subfamily Elaeniinae of family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay.

The large elaenia is monotypic. In the mid twentieth century at least one author treated the large elaenia and the yellow-bellied elaenia (E. flavogaster) as conspecific. During the period several authors suggested that the Noronha elaenia (E. ridleyana) should be treated as a subspecies of the large elaenia. That suggestion did not gain wide acceptance and by the 1990s had been shown to be wrong.

The large elaenia is 16.5 to 18 cm (6.5 to 7.1 in) long and weighs 20 to 35 g (0.71 to 1.2 oz). It is a large elaenia with a small crest. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults have a mostly olive-brown head with a minimal or no white stripe in the middle of the crest. Their upperparts are dark grayish olive. Their wings are dusky with white tips on the coverts that show as three wing bars. Their tail is dusky. Their throat is grayish, their breast dark olive-gray, and their belly and undertail undertail coverts yellow. Both... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:43

Argentina · 2026

© Marcos E. Sosa · XC1100147 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:44

Brazil · 2025

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1070606 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Recording0:09

Argentina · 2024

© Sabrina Andrea Rendon Anaya · XC947278 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Iberá National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~20%
2 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
3 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
4 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
5 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
6 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
8 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
9 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
10 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
11 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%
12 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Campo Grande 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
2 Asuncion 🇵🇾 Paraguay
~10%
3 São Paulo 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
4 Goiânia 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
5 Belo Horizonte 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
6 Manaus 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Buenos Aires 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Large Elaenia in Amacayacu National Natural Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Large Elaenia sighting in Amacayacu National Natural Park on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 344th most-seen of the 436 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Large Elaenia in Amacayacu National Natural Park?

August

In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Large Elaenia in Amacayacu National Natural Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to July, the lowest months. That is one of Amacayacu National Natural Park's driest months, with about 160 mm of rain against 390 mm in March.

What time of day is best to see a Large Elaenia?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Large Elaenia sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Amacayacu National Natural Park the best place to see a Large Elaenia?

9th of 12

Of the 12 parks where we can rate Large Elaenia sightings, Amacayacu National Natural Park ranks 9th at under 5%. The best odds are in Iberá National Park (Argentina, about 20%), El Impenetrable National Park (Argentina, about 10%) and Iguazú National Park (Argentina, about 10%).

Where does the Large Elaenia sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Large Elaenia is recorded against all the birds logged in Amacayacu National Natural Park (14 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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