Schoeniophylax phryganophilus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The chotoy spinetail (Schoeniophylax phryganophilus) is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The chotoy spinetail was originally described in genus Sylvia. Later authors placed it in Synallaxis but by the early 2010s it was recognized in its own genus Schoeniophylax. It and the white-bellied spinetail (Mazaria propinqua) are sister species.
The chotoy spinetail is 20 to 22 cm (7.9 to 8.7 in) long and weighs 15 to 22.5 g (0.53 to 0.79 oz). It is a large spinetail with a unique throat pattern. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a white supercilium and light brown ear coverts. Their forehead is dark brown, their crown chestnut with faint brown streaks, their back sandy brown with obvious dark brown streaks, and their lower back, rump, and uppertail coverts light brown. Their wings are mostly light brown with a chestnut shoulder. Their tail is long and light brown with... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iberá National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | El Impenetrable National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | El Palmar National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Cruz de la Sierra | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 2 | Rosario | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Asuncion | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | |
| 4 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Chotoy Spinetail sighting in Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas on a given day, based on 68 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 187th most-seen of the 308 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.
July and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Chotoy Spinetail in Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas on a given day, against under 5% in May–June, August–October and December, the lowest months. January to April have too few records to rate.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chotoy 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.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Chotoy Spinetail sightings, Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Iberá National Park (Argentina, about 40%) and El Impenetrable National Park (Argentina, about 10%).
Same family: Furnariidae
The closest relatives of the Chotoy Spinetail that you can see in Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (family Furnariidae, Ovenbirds and Woodcreepers) are Pale-legged Hornero (about 50%), Yellow-chinned Spinetail (about 50%) and Rufous Hornero (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chotoy Spinetail is recorded against all the birds logged in Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (68 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.
