Cranioleuca vulpina
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The rusty-backed spinetail (Cranioleuca vulpina) is a Neotropical species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Venezuela, and possibly Guyana.
The rusty-backed spinetail was formally described in 1856 by the Austrian ornithologist August von Pelzeln under the binomial name Synallaxis vulpina. Its specific epithet is from Latin vulpinus meaning "fox-like" (ie reddish-brown above and white beneath). The rusty-backed spinetail is now placed in the genus Cranioleuca that was introduced in 1853 by Ludwig Reichenbach.
Four subspecies are recognized: What are now the Coiba spinetail (C. dissita) and Parker's spinetail (C. vulpecula) were previously treated as subspecies of the rusty-backed spinetail. Other subspecies have been proposed but have not been accepted as valid.
The rusty-backed spinetail is 15 to 16 cm (5.9 to 6.3 in) long and weighs 14 to 17 g (0.49 to 0.60 oz). The sexes have the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coiba National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Anavilhanas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Goiânia | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Rusty-backed Spinetail sighting in Coiba National Park on a given day, based on 94 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 24th most-seen of the 118 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Rusty-backed Spinetail in Coiba National Park on a given day, against about 20% in November, the lowest month. That is one of Coiba National Park's wettest months, with about 490 mm of rain against 35 mm in February. May and October have too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rusty-backed Spinetail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Rusty-backed Spinetail sightings, Coiba National Park has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (Brazil, about 20%) and Anavilhanas National Park (Brazil, about 10%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Rusty-backed Spinetail that you can see in Coiba National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Lance-tailed Manakin (about 60%), Bananaquit (about 60%) and Barred Antshrike (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Rusty-backed Spinetail is recorded against all the birds logged in Coiba National Park (94 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.
