Melanerpes rubricapillus
Silhouette: Jason Dilworth · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The red-crowned woodpecker (Melanerpes rubricapillus) is a species of bird in the subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and Tobago. The red-crowned woodpecker has sometimes been placed in the genus Centurus. It has also sometimes been treated as conspecific with the Yucatan woodpecker (M. pygmaeus) and some authors consider them a superspecies.
The red-crowned woodpecker has these four subspecies: The validity of subspecies M. r. paraguanae has been challenged, and some other subspecies have been proposed but not accepted as valid. The red-crowned woodpecker is 16 to 18.5 cm (6.3 to 7.3 in) long and weighs 40 to 65 g (1.4 to 2.3 oz). The sexes' plumage is alike except for their head pattern. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a pale yellow to whitish forehead, a bright red crown, and an orange-red nape and hindneck. Adult females have the same pale yellow to whitish forehead but a pale gray-buff to whitish crown... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque Natural Metropolitano | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Coiba National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Piedras Blancas National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 5 | Tayrona National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 6 | Main Ridge Forest Reserve | 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago | |
| 7 | Manuel Antonio National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Marino Ballena National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | San Lorenzo Protected Forest | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 10 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 11 | Henri Pittier National Park | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 12 | Chagres National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 13 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 14 | Corcovado National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 15 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 16 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 17 | Carara National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 18 | Darién National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 19 | Los Nevados National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 20 | Sierra de la Macarena National Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 21 | Los Quetzales National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cali | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Valencia | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 3 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 4 | Caracas | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 5 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 6 | Maracaibo | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 7 | Barranquilla | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 8 | Bogota | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Red-crowned Woodpecker sighting in Los Nevados National Natural Park on a given day, based on 46 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 283rd most-seen of the 424 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Red-crowned Woodpecker in Los Nevados National Natural Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red-crowned Woodpecker sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
19th of 21
Of the 21 parks where we can rate Red-crowned Woodpecker sightings, Los Nevados National Natural Park ranks 19th at under 5%. The best odds are in Parque Natural Metropolitano (Panama, about 60%), Coiba National Park (Panama, about 60%) and Piedras Blancas National Park (Costa Rica, about 50%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red-crowned Woodpecker is recorded against all the birds logged in Los Nevados National Natural Park (46 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.
