Wedge-tailed Sabrewing

Wedge-tailed Sabrewing

Pampa curvipennis

Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Calakmul Biosphere Reserve

In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%

304 Verified sightings at Calakmul Biosphere Reserve From 2019 to 2026
1,113 In all 5 parks
January Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Wedge-tailed Sabrewing

The wedge-tailed sabrewing (Pampa curvipennis) is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in Belize, Guatemala, Mexico, and possibly Honduras. Two subspecies have sometimes been treated as separate species, the curve-winged sabrewing and the long-tailed sabrewing.

The wedge-tailed sabrewing was formally described in 1830 under the binomial name Trochilus curvipennis by the German accountant Wilhelm Deppe in a price list of specimens that had been collected in Mexico by Wilhelm's brother Ferdinand Deppe. The specific epithet combines the Latin curvus meaning "curved" with -pennis meaning "-winged". The wedge-tailed sabrewing is now placed with the rufous sabrewing in the genus Pampa that was introduced in 1854 by German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach.

This species was formerly placed in the genus Campylopterus. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that the genus Campylopterus was polyphyletic. In the revised classification to create monophyletic genera, the wedge-tailed sabrewing was moved to the resurrected genus Pampa.

Three subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:16

Mexico · 2021

© Manuel Grosselet · XC615194 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:35

Mexico · 2016

© James Bradley · XC305837 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:29

Mexico · 2000

© Peter Boesman · XC220183 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
2 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~30%
3 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
4 Biotopo Cerro Cahuí 🇬🇹 Guatemala
<5%
5 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing sighting in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, based on 304 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 26th most-seen of the 271 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve?

January and July

In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, against about 20% in April–May, August and November, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing?

Between 10 am and 1 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wedge-tailed Sabrewing 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 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve the best place to see a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing?

Yes

Of the 5 parks where we can rate Wedge-tailed Sabrewing sightings, Calakmul Biosphere Reserve has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve (Mexico, about 30%) and Tikal National Park (Guatemala, about 10%).

Where does the Wedge-tailed Sabrewing sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Wedge-tailed Sabrewing is recorded against all the birds logged in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (304 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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