Parkesia motacilla
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The Louisiana waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla) is a New World warbler, that breeds in eastern North America and winters in the West Indies and Central America. Plain brown above, it is white below, with black streaks and with buff flanks and undertail, distinguishing it from the closely related northern waterthrush. The habitats it prefers are streams and their surroundings, and other wet areas.
The Louisiana waterthrush breeds in eastern North America from southernmost Canada and south through the eastern United States, excluding Florida and the coast. It is migratory, wintering in Central America and the West Indies. This is a rare vagrant to the western United States. They are one of the earlier neotropical migrants to return to their breeding grounds in the spring, often completing their migration in late March or early April, which is almost two months before most other warblers reach their breeding grounds. They are also one of the earliest warblers to vacate their breeding grounds, with some departing as early as July; almost all will have left by late August.
The Louisiana waterthrush has a plain brown back and white underparts streaked with black... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Havana | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 2 | Santo Domingo | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 3 | San Pedro Sula | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 4 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Puebla | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Guadalajara | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 10 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Louisiana Waterthrush sighting in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, based on 28 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 209th most-seen of the 271 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Louisiana Waterthrush in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in April to February, the lowest months. That is one of Calakmul Biosphere Reserve's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain against 130 mm in June.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Louisiana Waterthrush sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
21st of 46
Of the 46 parks where we can rate Louisiana Waterthrush sightings, Calakmul Biosphere Reserve ranks 21st at under 5%. The best odds are in Los Haitises National Park (Dominican Republic, about 30%), Great Smoky Mountains National Park (United States, about 20%) and Ciénaga de Zapata (Cuba, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Louisiana Waterthrush is recorded against all the birds logged in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (28 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.
