Semnornis frantzii
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The prong-billed barbet (Semnornis frantzii) is a distinctive, relatively large-billed bird native to humid highland forest of Costa Rica and western Panama. The prong-billed barbet was traditionally placed in family Capitonidae sensu lato with both Neotropic and Old World barbets. However, morphological, hybridization, and DNA studies have confirmed that this arrangement is paraphyletic; New World barbets are more closely related to toucans than they are to Old World barbets. Therefore New World (Capitonidae sensu stricto), African (Lybiidae), and Asian (Megalaimidae) barbets were each accorded their own families. The prong-billed barbet and the toucan barbet (Semnornis ramphastinus) were placed in the new family Semnornithidae.
The prong-billed barbet is monotypic. Its specific epithet commemorates the German naturalist Alexander von Frantzius. The prong-billed barbet is 17 to 18.5 cm (6.7 to 7.3 in) long and weighs about 60 to 70 g (2.1 to 2.5 oz). Its bill is silvery gray to bluish with a dark tip; a notch on the tip of the mandible provides its English name. The maxilla has a hooked tip and a notch on the side. Adults have a dull... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Poás Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 6 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Prong-billed Barbet sighting in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve on a given day, based on 2,467 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 72nd most-seen of the 412 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–August and October–December
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Prong-billed Barbet in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve on a given day, against about 10% in January and September, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Prong-billed Barbet sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 7
Of the 7 parks where we can rate Prong-billed Barbet sightings, Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Poás Volcano National Park (Costa Rica, about 60%) and Volcán Barú National Park (Panama, about 30%).
Same order: Piciformes
The closest relatives of the Prong-billed Barbet that you can see in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (order Piciformes, Woodpeckers and Allies) are Northern Emerald-Toucanet (about 60%), Keel-billed Toucan (about 50%) and Hoffmann's Woodpecker (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Prong-billed Barbet is recorded against all the birds logged in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (2,467 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.
