Harpactes whiteheadi
Silhouette: Keith Murdock (photo), John E. McCormack, Michael G. Harvey, Brant C. Faircloth, Nicholas G. Crawford, Travis C. Glenn, Robb T. Brumfield & T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
Whitehead's trogon (Harpactes whiteheadi) is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae. It is endemic to the island of Borneo, where it is an uncommon resident in primary mountain forest. One of Borneo's largest trogons at 29 to 33 cm (11 to 13 in) long, it is sexually dimorphic. The male is crimson on the head, nape, and underparts, with a black throat and grey chest; the rest of his upperparts are cinnamon-coloured. The female is similarly patterned, but cinnamon-brown where the male is scarlet. The species was first described for science by Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1888, who named it for British explorer and collector John Whitehead. There are no subspecies.
It is primarily an insectivore, but also eats various plant materials, including fruits and seeds. Other than the timing of its breeding—typically between April and June—little is known about its breeding biology. The International Union for Conservation of Nature rates Whitehead's trogon as a near-threatened species. While its population numbers have not been quantified, the trogon is thought to be declining. Habitat loss is a key threat.
English ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe first described... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kinabalu Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Whitehead's Trogon sighting in Kinabalu Park on a given day, based on 1,195 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 25th most-seen of the 247 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March to May
In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Whitehead's Trogon in Kinabalu Park on a given day, against about 30% in February, September and November, the lowest months.
Between 2 and 5 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Whitehead's Trogon sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Only Kinabalu Park, in our data
Kinabalu Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Whitehead's Trogon sightings: about 40% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Whitehead's Trogon is recorded against all the birds logged in Kinabalu Park (1,195 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.
