Phaeochroa cuvierii
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The scaly-breasted hummingbird or scaly-breasted sabrewing (Phaeochroa cuvierii) is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.
Most major taxonomic systems place the scaly-breasted hummingbird by itself in genus Phaeochroa. However, BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) places it in the large genus Campylopterus and calls it the scaly-breasted sabrewing. All but HBW follow the findings of a 2014 study that found Campylpterus to be polyphyletic and resulted in the move of several species to other genera.
The worldwide systems agree that the scaly-breasted hummingbird has these six subspecies: The scaly-breasted hummingbird is 11.5 to 13 cm (4.5 to 5.1 in) long and weighs about 8 to 10 g (0.28 to 0.35 oz). All of the subspecies... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sighting in Marino Ballena National Park on a given day, based on 50 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 164th most-seen of the 303 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird in Marino Ballena National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to September, the lowest months. That is one of Marino Ballena National Park's wettest months, with about 920 mm of rain against 110 mm in February.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
18th of 29
Of the 29 parks where we can rate Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sightings, Marino Ballena National Park ranks 18th at under 5%. The best odds are in Arenal Volcano National Park (Costa Rica, about 30%), Tenorio Volcano National Park (Costa Rica, about 20%) and Carara National Park (Costa Rica, about 20%).
Same family: Trochilidae
The closest relatives of the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird that you can see in Marino Ballena National Park (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (about 40%), Blue-throated Sapphire (about 10%) and Purple-crowned Fairy (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Marino Ballena National Park (50 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.
