Chlorospingus flavopectus
Silhouette: L. Shyamal · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The common chlorospingus (Chlorospingus flavopectus), also referred to as common bush tanager, is a small passerine bird. It is a resident breeder in the highlands from central Mexico south to Bolivia and northwest Argentina. C. flavopectus in the loose sense is a notorious cryptic species complex, and several of the up to 25 subspecies recognized in recent times are likely to be distinct species. Some populations in fact appear to be more distinct than several other members of Chlorospingus.
The adult is 13.5 cm (5.3 in) long and weighs 20 g (0.71 oz) on average. They have a brown head with a (usually) thin supercilium and a white spot behind the eye and a light throat. The upperparts are olive and the underparts yellow, becoming white on the belly. Coloration, especially of the cheeks, throat and eye region, is very variable across the wide range, giving weight to the theory that these birds form a superspecies. Immatures are browner above, darker below, and have a duller olive eye spot. Hatchlings are covered in dark gray down feathers and have bright yellow bills.
The call is a squeaky tseeet or chit. Songs vary widely between the populations. The related... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Poás Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 4 | La Tigra National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 5 | Henri Pittier National Park | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 6 | El Triunfo | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 10 | Los Quetzales National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 11 | Cusuco National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 12 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 13 | Celaque National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 14 | Podocarpus National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 15 | Irazú Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 16 | Los Nevados National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 17 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 18 | Amboró National Park | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 19 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 20 | Chingaza National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 21 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 22 | Pico Bonito National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guatemala City | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 2 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 3 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Chlorospingus sighting in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 1,271 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 167th most-seen of the 503 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March to January
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Chlorospingus in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February, the lowest month.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Chlorospingus sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
17th of 22
Of the 22 parks where we can rate Common Chlorospingus sightings, Arenal Volcano National Park ranks 17th at about 10%. The best odds are in Poás Volcano National Park (Costa Rica, about 60%), Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (Costa Rica, about 50%) and Volcán Barú National Park (Panama, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Passerellidae
The closest relatives of the Common Chlorospingus that you can see in Arenal Volcano National Park (family Passerellidae, New World Sparrows) are Black-striped Sparrow (about 40%), Orange-billed Sparrow (about 30%) and Rufous-collared Sparrow (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Chlorospingus is recorded against all the birds logged in Arenal Volcano National Park (1,271 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.
