Morphnus guianensis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The crested eagle (Morphnus guianensis) is a large neotropical eagle, the only member of the genus Morphnus. The crested eagle can grow up to 89 cm (35 in) long, with a wingspan up to 176 cm (69 in), and weigh up to 3 kg (6.6 lb). The plumage varies between a light brownish-gray to sooty gray or even blackish in some cases. It has a white throat and a dark spot on the crest and a small dark mask across the eyes. It ranges extensively throughout Central and South America, but not in large numbers, favoring tropical lowland forest. A powerful predator, its diet consist mainly of small mammals, rodents, snakes and smaller birds. Despite their large distribution, they are currently classified as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, due mainly to habitat loss
It is sparsely distributed throughout its extensive range from northern Guatemala through Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, the subtropical Andes of Colombia, northeastern Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Brazil (where it has suffered greatly from habitat destruction, being now found practically only in the Amazonian basin), and east Andean Ecuador, southeastern... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darién National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Anavilhanas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Tambopata National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 4 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 5 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque Municipal Summit | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Zoológico Dois Irmãos | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Wiwa Quito | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | Zooparque Itatiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Eagle sighting in Darién National Park on a given day, based on 29 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 218th most-seen of the 397 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.
February to April
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Eagle in Darién National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May to January, the lowest months. Those are among Darién National Park's driest months, with about 180 mm of rain a month against 450 mm in November.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Crested Eagle 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 5 parks where we can rate Crested Eagle sightings, Darién National Park has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Anavilhanas National Park (Brazil, under 5%) and Tambopata National Reserve (Peru, under 5%).
Same family: Accipitridae
The closest relatives of the Crested Eagle that you can see in Darién National Park (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Harpy Eagle (about 20%), Roadside Hawk (about 20%) and White Hawk (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Crested Eagle is recorded against all the birds logged in Darién National Park (29 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.
