Scytalopus speluncae
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The mouse-coloured tapaculo or Serra do Mar tapaculo (Scytalopus speluncae) is a species of bird in the family Rhinocryptidae. It is endemic to humid highland forests in southeastern Brazil, where it ranges from southwestern Espírito Santo to northeastern Rio Grande do Sul. Most of its range is in the Serra do Mar, but it also occurs further inland in Paraná and Santa Catarina. Until 2005, the Planalto tapaculo was included in the mouse-coloured tapaculo.
Here we follow SACC, but the taxonomy is extremely complex, and it is possible the correct scientific name of this relatively dark species is S. notorius, in which case the closely related paler species from the Espinhaço Mountains region would be S. speluncae.
In 2005, it was found that the otherwise relatively well known S. speluncae actually consisted of two species, of which the southern was described as a new species, S. pachecoi, while the northern retained S. speluncae. It was further suggested that S. speluncae included yet another undescribed species, but more work was needed on that matter.
In 2006, doubt about the use of the scientific name S. speluncae for the mouse-coloured tapaculo... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Itatiaia National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Serra dos Órgãos National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Mouse-colored Tapaculo sighting in Itatiaia National Park on a given day, based on 517 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 93rd most-seen of the 352 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–March and October–November
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Mouse-colored Tapaculo in Itatiaia National Park on a given day, against about 10% in May and December–January, the lowest months. Those are among Itatiaia National Park's wettest months, with about 270 mm of rain a month against 25 mm in July.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mouse-colored Tapaculo sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Mouse-colored Tapaculo sightings, Itatiaia National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Serra dos Órgãos National Park (Brazil, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mouse-colored Tapaculo is recorded against all the birds logged in Itatiaia National Park (517 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.
