Rufous Hornero

Rufous Hornero

Furnarius rufus

Silhouette: Abraão B. Leite · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Belo Horizonte

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

705 Verified sightings at Belo Horizonte
10,253 In all 14 parks From 2019 to 2026
October Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Rufous Hornero

The rufous hornero (Furnarius rufus) is a medium-sized ovenbird in the family Furnariidae. It occurs in eastern South America and is the national bird of Argentina. Also known as the red ovenbird, it is common in savannas, second-growth scrub, pastures, and agricultural land and is synanthropic. Its range includes midwestern, southeastern, and southern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northern and central Argentina, extending as far south as northern Patagonia. The species is most closely related to the crested hornero of Paraguay and Argentina. There are four accepted subspecies.

The rufous hornero is medium-sized with a square tail and very slightly decurved bill. The plumage is overall reddish brown with a dull brown crown and a whitish throat. Sexes are alike and juvenile birds are slightly paler below (probably because they are cleaner). Rufous horneros feed on insects and other arthropods obtained by foraging on the ground while walking. They sometimes feed on scraps such as bread crumbs. Songs in the rufous hornero are sexually distinct. The rapid trill that is usually heard as part of the duet is faster in the male and slower in the female, and both beat their wings at their sides while singing and the wings beat at the same rate as their trill. Thus, while watching an observer may identify the sex by how fast their wings beat while singing. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Duet0:05

Brazil · 2026

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1163747 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:08

Argentina · 2024

© Marcos E. Sosa · XC943374 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:13

Argentina · 2023

© Bernard BOUSQUET · XC838919 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Iberá National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~80%
2 El Palmar National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~70%
3 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~70%
4 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~60%
5 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~50%
6 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
7 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
~40%
8 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
9 Emas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
10 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
11 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
12 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
13 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
14 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Brasilia 🇧🇷 Brazil
~90%
2 Porto Alegre 🇧🇷 Brazil
~90%
3 Montevideo 🇺🇾 Uruguay
~90%
4 Cordoba 🇦🇷 Argentina
~90%
5 Buenos Aires 🇦🇷 Argentina
~90%
6 Mendoza 🇦🇷 Argentina
~90%
7 Curitiba 🇧🇷 Brazil
~90%
8 Salvador 🇧🇷 Brazil
~90%
9 Rosario 🇦🇷 Argentina
~90%
10 Campo Grande 🇧🇷 Brazil
~80%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Rufous Hornero in Belo Horizonte?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Rufous Hornero sighting in Belo Horizonte on a given day, based on 705 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 19th most-seen of the 220 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 Rufous Hornero in Belo Horizonte?

October and December

In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Rufous Hornero in Belo Horizonte on a given day, against about 20% in April and May, the lowest months. Those are among Belo Horizonte's wettest months, with about 180 mm of rain a month against 5 mm in July.

What time of day is best to see a Rufous Hornero?

Between 11 am and 2 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rufous Hornero 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 Belo Horizonte the best place to see a Rufous Hornero?

19th of 22

Of the 22 cities where we can rate Rufous Hornero sightings, Belo Horizonte ranks 19th at about 40%. The best odds are in Brasilia (Brazil, about 90%), Porto Alegre (Brazil, about 90%) and Montevideo (Uruguay, about 90%).

Where does the Rufous Hornero sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Rufous Hornero is recorded against all the birds logged in Belo Horizonte (705 verified sightings), 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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