Machetornis rixosa
Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The cattle tyrant (Machetornis rixosa) is a species of bird in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae. In Brazil, it is called suiriri-cavaleiro. It is the only member of the genus Machetornis. The relationships of this species and genus to other genera in the tyrant flycatchers are uncertain. It resembles Tyrannus flycatchers, but this may be the result of convergence.
The genus name was given to the species by George Robert Gray and is derived from the Ancient Greek makhētēs for fighter and ornis for bird, a reference to its pugnacious behaviour and habit of dispossessing other species of their nests. The specific name comes from the Latin rixosus meaning quarrelsome, again referring to the behaviour and temperament of the species.
The species has a disjunct distribution, with three subspecies accepted: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iberá National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | El Palmar National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | El Impenetrable National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 4 | Serra da Canastra National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Emas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Iguazú National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 8 | Iguaçu National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Serra dos Órgãos National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 11 | Henri Pittier National Park | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 12 | Tayrona National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 13 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 14 | Piedras Blancas National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 15 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 16 | Los Nevados National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 17 | Itatiaia National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 18 | Chapada Diamantina National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 19 | Amboró National Park | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 20 | Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 21 | Chapada dos Guimarães National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 22 | Sierra de la Macarena National Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rosario | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Mendoza | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 5 | Montevideo | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | |
| 6 | Cordoba | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 7 | Natal | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Salvador | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | João Pessoa | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Fortaleza | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Cattle Tyrant sighting in El Palmar National Park on a given day, based on 259 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 16th most-seen of the 151 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, April and September
In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Cattle Tyrant in El Palmar National Park on a given day, against about 40% in October, the lowest month.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cattle Tyrant sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 22
Of the 22 parks where we can rate Cattle Tyrant sightings, El Palmar National Park ranks 2nd at about 60%. The best odds are in Iberá National Park (Argentina, about 70%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Tyrannidae
The closest relatives of the Cattle Tyrant that you can see in El Palmar National Park (family Tyrannidae, Tyrant Flycatchers) are Great Kiskadee (about 50%), Tropical Kingbird (about 50%) and White-crested Tyrannulet (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cattle Tyrant is recorded against all the birds logged in El Palmar National Park (259 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.
