Akletos melanoceps
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The white-shouldered antbird (Akletos melanoceps) is a species of bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The white-shouldered antbird was described and illustrated by the German naturalist Johann Baptist von Spix in 1825 and given the binomial name Thamnophilus melanoceps. It was subsequently moved to the genus Myrmeciza. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2013 found that Myrmeciza was polyphyletic. In the resulting rearrangement to create monophyletic genera, this species was moved to a newly created genus Inundicola. A year later the same authors determined that by the principle of priority the older genus Akletos, which had been introduced by the Polish ornithologist Andrzej Dunajewski in 1948, was proper.
The white-shouldered antbird shares genus Akletos with Goeldi's antbird (A. goeldii). It is monotypic. The white-shouldered antbird is 17 to 18.5 cm (6.7 to 7.3 in) long and weighs 36 to 40 g (1.3 to 1.4 oz). Both sexes have a ring of bare blue skin around their eye and a red iris. Adult males are mostly black with a small white... Wikipedia →
Recording0:10
Peru · 2008
© dbeadle · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:21
Ecuador · 2025
© Nelson Apolo · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:18
Ecuador · 2025
© Mathieu Sannier · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 2 | Amacayacu National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 3 | Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-shouldered Antbird sighting in Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve on a given day, based on 22 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 178th most-seen of the 328 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June, September and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-shouldered Antbird in Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in January–May, July–August and October–November, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-shouldered Antbird 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 parks where we can rate White-shouldered Antbird sightings, Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Yasuní National Park (Ecuador, about 10%) and Amacayacu National Natural Park (Colombia, about 10%).
Same family: Thamnophilidae
The closest relatives of the White-shouldered Antbird that you can see in Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve (family Thamnophilidae, Typical Antbirds) are Amazonian Streaked-Antwren (about 10%), Pygmy Antwren (about 10%) and Black-chinned Antbird (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-shouldered Antbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve (22 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.
