Scytalopus argentifrons
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The silvery-fronted tapaculo (Scytalopus argentifrons) is a species of bird in the family Rhinocryptidae. It is found in Costa Rica and Panama. The silvery-fronted tapaculo has two subspecies, the nominate "silvery-fronted" Scytalopus argentifrons argentifrons and the "Chiriqui" S. a. chiriquensis. The Chiriqui subspecies has at times been considered a separate species.
The silvery-fronted tapaculo is 11 cm (4.3 in) long and weighs 17 g (0.60 oz). The male of the nominate subspecies is mostly sooty black; the lower breast and belly are paler. The flanks and crissum (the area around the cloaca) are brownish red. It has a silvery forehead (the "front") and a white supercilium. The male Chiriqui is darker with a less prominent supercilium. The females of both subspecies do not have a supercilium; their upper parts are dark brown, the throat and breast are dark gray, the belly blackish, and the flanks and crissum brighter brownish red than the male's. The juvenile is similar to the female but darker with brown "scales" on the underparts.
The silvery-fronted tapaculo is the only member of its family whose entire... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Los Quetzales National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 5 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Poás Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Irazú Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 11 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Silvery-fronted Tapaculo sighting in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 238 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 311th most-seen of the 503 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Silvery-fronted Tapaculo in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Silvery-fronted Tapaculo sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 11
Of the 11 parks where we can rate Silvery-fronted Tapaculo sightings, Arenal Volcano National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Volcán Barú National Park (Panama, about 30%), Los Quetzales National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%) and Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Silvery-fronted Tapaculo that you can see in Arenal Volcano National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Scarlet-rumped Tanager (about 80%), Clay-colored Thrush (about 70%) and Blue-gray Tanager (about 70%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Silvery-fronted Tapaculo is recorded against all the birds logged in Arenal Volcano National Park (238 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.
