Heliothryx barroti
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10%
The purple-crowned fairy (Heliothryx barroti) is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae, the mangoes. It is found from southeastern Mexico south into northern Peru. The purple-crowned fairy was originally described as Trochilus Barroti. It and the black-eared fairy (Heliothryx auritus) were treated as conspecific by some authors but are now considered to be a superspecies; they are the only members of the genus. Its scientific name commemorates Adolphe Barrot (1801–1870), a French diplomat who served in Colombia from 1831 to 1835.
The purple-crowned fairy is monotypic. The purple-crowned fairy is 9 to 13 cm (3.5 to 5.1 in) long and weighs about 5.5 g (0.19 oz). It is slender and has bright emerald green upperparts, pure white underparts, and a long pointed tail which has blue-black central and white outer feathers. It has a black patch through the eye and the bill is short, straight, and black. The male has a metallic violet forecrown; the eye patch has a metallic violet spot behind it and bright emerald green below it. The female has a green crown and the face has less black, no violet spot, and no green below the black... Wikipedia →
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Purple-crowned Fairy sighting in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary on a given day, based on 18 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 221st most-seen of the 277 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Purple-crowned Fairy in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary on a given day, against under 5% in September to July, the lowest months. That is one of Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary's wettest months, with about 250 mm of rain against 75 mm in April.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Purple-crowned Fairy sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
25th of 32
Of the 32 parks where we can rate Purple-crowned Fairy sightings, Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary ranks 25th at under 5%. The best odds are in Pico Bonito National Park (Honduras, about 20%), Tikal National Park (Guatemala, about 20%) and Darién National Park (Panama, about 20%).
Same family: Trochilidae
The closest relatives of the Purple-crowned Fairy that you can see in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (about 60%), Stripe-throated Hermit (about 40%) and Long-billed Hermit (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Purple-crowned Fairy is recorded against all the birds logged in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (18 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.
