Bat Falcon

Bat Falcon

Falco rufigularis

Silhouette: Shyamal · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Chapada dos Guimarães National Park

In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%

172 Verified sightings at Chapada dos Guimarães National Park From 2019 to 2026
9,424 In all 64 parks
October Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Bat Falcon

The bat falcon (Falco rufigularis) is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Mexico, Central America, Trinidad, and every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

The bat falcon was long known as Falco albigularis; the names Falco fusco-coerulescens or Falco fuscocaerulescens, long used for the aplomado falcon (F. femoralis), are now believed to refer to the present species. The bat falcon has these three subspecies:

Others add a fourth subspecies F. r. petrophilus that is usually included in petoensis. The bat falcon is closely related to and looks like a small version of the orange-breasted falcon (F. deiroleucus), with which it has often been misidentified. They share plumage and vocal characteristics and are sister species. These two had been thought to be closely related to the aplomado... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call1:00

Argentina · 2026

© Marcos E. Sosa · XC1091783 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:04

Brazil · 2025

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC974425 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call1:09

Brazil · 2016

© Jerome Fischer · XC332664 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
2 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~30%
3 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
4 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
5 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~20%
6 Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
7 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
8 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
9 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
10 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
11 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
12 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
13 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
14 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
15 Cusuco National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
16 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
17 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
18 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
19 Biotopo Cerro Cahuí 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
20 Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
21 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
22 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
23 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
24 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
25 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
26 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
27 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
~10%
28 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
29 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
30 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
31 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
32 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
33 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
34 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
35 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
<5%
36 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
37 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
38 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
39 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
40 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
41 Brownsberg Nature Park 🇸🇷 Suriname
<5%
42 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
43 Lago de Yojoa 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
44 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
45 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
46 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
47 Volcán Barú National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
48 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
49 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
50 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
51 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
52 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
53 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
54 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
55 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
56 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
57 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
58 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
59 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
60 Los Quetzales National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
61 Podocarpus National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
62 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
63 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
64 Masaya Volcano National Park 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Vitória 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
2 San Pedro Sula 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
3 Manaus 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
4 Campo Grande 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
5 Caracas 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
6 Rio de Janeiro 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Panama City 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
8 Managua 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
<5%
9 Cali 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
10 San José 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Bat Falcon in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Bat Falcon sighting in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park on a given day, based on 172 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 59th most-seen of the 273 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Bat Falcon in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park?

May and October–November

In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Bat Falcon in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park on a given day, against about 10% in July and December–January, the lowest months. February to April have too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Bat Falcon?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Bat Falcon sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Chapada dos Guimarães National Park the best place to see a Bat Falcon?

3rd of 64

Of the 64 parks where we can rate Bat Falcon sightings, Chapada dos Guimarães National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve (Mexico, about 40%) and Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (Mexico, about 30%).

Where does the Bat Falcon sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Bat Falcon is recorded against all the birds logged in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park (172 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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