Mitrospingus cassinii
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The dusky-faced tanager (Mitrospingus cassinii) is a species of bird in the family Mitrospingidae. It is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama. The dusky-faced tanager and the three other species in family Mitrospingidae were previously placed in family Thraupidae, the "true" tanagers. A 2013 publication detailed how they did not belong there and proposed the new family for them. The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) followed suit in January 2018.
The dusky-faced tanager has two subspecies, the nominate Mitrospingus cassinii cassinii and M. c. costaricensis. The two subspecies are "very poorly differentiated." The adults are 18 to 18.5 cm (7.1 to 7.3 in) long and weigh 32 to 39 g (1.1 to 1.4 oz). Their crown and nape are mustard yellow. The face has a large black "mask". Their upper parts are lead gray. The throat is light gray transitioning to olive yellow on the breast and flanks and further to a gray-olive-yellow blend on the belly. The juvenile is... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utría National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Darién National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 7 | San Lorenzo Protected Forest | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 8 | Tortuguero National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Cahuita National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | Bastimentos Island National Marine Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 11 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Dusky-faced Tanager sighting in Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge on a given day, based on 115 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 134th most-seen of the 329 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Dusky-faced Tanager in Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge on a given day, against under 5% in April–May and November–December, the lowest months. Those are among Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge's wettest months, with about 480 mm of rain a month against 140 mm in March.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Dusky-faced Tanager sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 11 parks where we can rate Dusky-faced Tanager sightings, Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge ranks 4th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Utría National Natural Park (Colombia, about 10%), Darién National Park (Panama, about 10%) and Farallones de Cali National Natural Park (Colombia, about 10%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Dusky-faced Tanager that you can see in Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Great Kiskadee (about 70%), Montezuma Oropendola (about 60%) and Scarlet-rumped Tanager (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Dusky-faced Tanager is recorded against all the birds logged in Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge (115 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.
