Diglossa cyanea
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The masked flowerpiercer (Diglossa cyanea) is a species of bird in the tanager family, Thraupidae. It is found in humid montane forest and scrub in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. Flowerpiercers got their name from the fact that they have a sharp hook on the tip of their upper mandible which they use to slice open the base of flowers to get at the nectar.
The masked flowerpiercer was formally described in 1840 by the French ornithologist Frédéric de Lafresnaye based on a specimen collected by Auguste Boissonneau near Santa Fe, Bogotá in Colombia. Lafresnaye coined the binomial name Uncirostrum cyaneum. The masked flowerpiercer is now one of 18 flowerpiercers placed in the genus Diglossa that was introduced in 1832 by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler.
Five subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chingaza National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Podocarpus National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 3 | Los Nevados National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Masked Flowerpiercer sighting in Medellín on a given day, based on 28 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 156th most-seen of the 244 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Masked Flowerpiercer in Medellín on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Masked Flowerpiercer sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Masked Flowerpiercer sightings, Medellín ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Quito (Ecuador, about 40%) and Bogota (Colombia, under 5%).
Same family: Thraupidae
The closest relatives of the Masked Flowerpiercer that you can see in Medellín (family Thraupidae, Tanagers and Allies) are Blue-gray Tanager (about 90%), Palm Tanager (about 80%) and Bananaquit (about 70%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Masked Flowerpiercer is recorded against all the birds logged in Medellín (28 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.
