Cinclus mexicanus
Silhouette: Beth Reinke · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The American dipper (Cinclus mexicanus), also known as a water ouzel, is a semiaquatic bird species native from North America. The American dipper is a stocky, grey bird with a head sometimes tinged with brown, and white feathers on the eyelids that cause the eyes to flash white as the bird blinks. On average, it measures 16.5 cm (6.5 in) in length, has a wingspan of 23 cm (9.1 in), and weighs 46 g (1.6 oz).
The American dipper was described by English zoologist William Swainson in 1827 based on a specimen that had been collected in Mexico by English naturalist William Bullock. Swainson placed the new species with the dippers in the genus Cinclus and coined the current binomial name Cinclus mexicanus. The type locality is Temascaltepec de González in Mexico.
The five subspecies are: Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anchorage | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Planckendael Zoo | 🇧🇪 Belgium |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Dipper sighting in Banff National Park on a given day, based on 507 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 65th most-seen of the 191 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.
January
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report an American Dipper in Banff National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May–June and September, the lowest months.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most American Dipper sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
9th of 26
Of the 26 parks where we can rate American Dipper sightings, Banff National Park ranks 9th at about 10%. The best odds are in Glacier National Park (United States, about 20%), Zion National Park (United States, about 20%) and Yellowstone National Park (United States, about 20%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the American Dipper that you can see in Banff National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are American Robin (about 80%), Dark-eyed Junco (about 70%) and Common Raven (about 70%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the American Dipper is recorded against all the birds logged in Banff National Park (507 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.
