Glaucidium peruanum
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Pacific pygmy owl (Glaucidium peruanum), or Peruvian pygmy owl, is a small "typical owl" in subfamily Surniinae. It is found in Chile, Ecuador, and Peru. The Peruvian pygmy owl was first described as a species by Claus König, a German ornithologist, in 1991. Until then it had been treated as a subspecies of the widespread ferruginous pygmy owl (G. brasilianum). König separated the two primarily by their vocal differences; their ranges do not overlap. The Pacific pygmy owl is monotypic.
The Pacific pygmy owl is 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long. Males weigh about 60 g (2.1 oz) and females about 65 g (2.3 oz). In addition to being heavier, females also have slightly longer wings and tails than males, but both sexes have the same plumage. The species has gray, brown, and rufous color morphs, with the first two predominating. The upperparts of gray morph adults are grayish brown with buff streaks on the forecrown and buff spots on the crown and nape. An incomplete white "collar" and oval black spots on the neck give the appearance of eyes. The shoulders and back have whitish spots. The tail is also grayish brown, with up to seven whitish... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Machalilla National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 2 | Lauca National Park | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 3 | Podocarpus National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque Cóndor | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
No species of the same family or order lives in Lauca National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other birds.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Peruvian Pygmy-Owl sighting in Lauca National Park on a given day, based on 95 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 74th most-seen of the 112 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.
September and December–January
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Peruvian Pygmy-Owl in Lauca National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, the lowest month. Those are among Lauca National Park's wettest months, with about 75 mm of rain a month against almost none in May.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Peruvian Pygmy-Owl sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Peruvian Pygmy-Owl sightings, Lauca National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Machalilla National Park (Ecuador, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Peruvian Pygmy-Owl is recorded against all the birds logged in Lauca National Park (95 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.
