Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed)

Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed)

Myiopagis caniceps

Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Itatiaia National Park

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%

66 Verified sightings at Itatiaia National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,164 In all 10 parks
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed)

The grey-headed elaenia or Atlantic grey elaenia (Myiopagis caniceps) is a species of bird in subfamily Elaeniinae of family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay. What is now the grey-headed elaenia was originally called the "straw-crested flycatcher" (Tyrannula caniceps). It was later moved into genus Myiopagis and called the grey elaenia. Soon thereafter Myiopagis was merged into genus Elaenia and other taxa were moved from species status to become subspecies of it. The move into Elaenia was reversed in the mid-twentieth century, and Myiopagis was confirmed by genetic analysis to be the grey elaenia's proper genus.

The grey-headed elaenia's further taxonomy is unsettled. These systems named the three species the grey(gray)-headed... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:21

Brazil · 2026

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1162212 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:45

Brazil · 2026

© Robson Silva e Silva · XC1084279 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:11

Brazil · 2022

© Nunes D´Acosta · XC723749 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
2 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
3 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
4 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
5 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%
6 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
8 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
9 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
10 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Goiânia 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
2 Belo Horizonte 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
3 Brasilia 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) in Itatiaia National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) sighting in Itatiaia National Park on a given day, based on 66 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 212th most-seen of the 352 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) in Itatiaia National Park?

April–May and July

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) in Itatiaia National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and August–March, the lowest months. Those are among Itatiaia National Park's driest months, with about 70 mm of rain a month against 330 mm in December.

What time of day is best to see a Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed)?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Which relatives of the Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) live in Itatiaia National Park?

Same family: Tyrannidae

The closest relatives of the Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) that you can see in Itatiaia National Park (family Tyrannidae, Tyrant Flycatchers) are Cliff Flycatcher (about 60%), Great Kiskadee (about 50%) and Planalto Tyrannulet (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Gray Elaenia (Gray-headed) is recorded against all the birds logged in Itatiaia National Park (66 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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