Scale-throated Hermit

Scale-throated Hermit

Phaethornis eurynome

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Iguazú National Park

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%

538 Verified sightings at Iguazú National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,835 In all 5 parks
May Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Scale-throated Hermit

The scale-throated hermit (Phaethornis eurynome) is a species in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. Though the scale-throated hermit is a member of the large genus Phaethornis it seems to have no close relatives. The supposed "black-billed hermit", described as P. nigrirostris, was proven to be a mutant P. eurynome with an all-black bill.

The scale-throated hermit is about 14 to 14.5 cm (5.5 to 5.7 in) long. Males weigh 4.5 to 6 g (0.16 to 0.21 oz) and females 4 to 5 g (0.14 to 0.18 oz). This medium-sized hermit is olive green above with grayish underparts. Its dark throat whose feathers have lighter edges give the eponymous scaly appearance. The face has a black "mask" with a pale supercilium and gular stripe. Its tail feathers have white tips and the middle pair are longer than the others. The sexes are similar but the female has shorter wings and a less strongly decurved bill. The two subspecies have identical plumage but... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Recording0:11

Argentina · 2026

© Faustino Hollmann · XC1176799 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:32

Brazil · 2026

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1150898 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:54

Brazil · 2022

© GABRIEL LEITE · XC752760 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
2 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
3 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
4 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
5 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Curitiba 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
2 São Paulo 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
3 Rio de Janeiro 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Scale-throated Hermit in Iguazú National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Scale-throated Hermit sighting in Iguazú National Park on a given day, based on 538 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 109th most-seen of the 343 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Scale-throated Hermit in Iguazú National Park?

March, May and October

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Scale-throated Hermit in Iguazú National Park on a given day, against about 10% in April, June–September and November–February, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Scale-throated Hermit?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Scale-throated Hermit sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Iguazú National Park the best place to see a Scale-throated Hermit?

3rd of 5

Of the 5 parks where we can rate Scale-throated Hermit sightings, Iguazú National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Itatiaia National Park (Brazil, about 40%) and Serra dos Órgãos National Park (Brazil, about 20%).

Where does the Scale-throated Hermit sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Scale-throated Hermit is recorded against all the birds logged in Iguazú National Park (538 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.

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