Nyctidromus albicollis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The pauraque (Nyctidromus albicollis) – also called the common pauraque to distinguish it from similar species – is a nightjar species, one of two birds in the genus Nyctidromus. It breeds in the subtropical and tropical regions of the New World, and except for northernmost birds it is largely resident all year round.
The pauraque was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other nightjars in the genus Caprimulgus and coined the binomial name Caprimulgus albicollis. Gmelin based his description on the "white-throated goatsucker" that had been described in 1783 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham had examined a preserved specimen in London that was thought to have come from Cayenne, French Guiana. The pauraque is now placed with Anthony's nightjar in the genus Nyctidromus that was introduced in 1838 by the English ornithologist John Gould. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek nukti- meaning "nocturnal" or "night-" with -dromos meaning "-racer". The specific epithet albicollis combines... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recife | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Managua | 🇳🇮 Nicaragua | |
| 3 | Goiânia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 6 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Guatemala City | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 8 | Vitória | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Maceió | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Pauraque sighting in Ostional Wildlife Refuge on a given day, based on 57 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 94th most-seen of the 182 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.
September
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Common Pauraque in Ostional Wildlife Refuge on a given day, against under 5% in January and November, the lowest months. That is one of Ostional Wildlife Refuge's wettest months, with about 410 mm of rain against 15 mm in February.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Pauraque sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
31st of 69
Of the 69 parks where we can rate Common Pauraque sightings, Ostional Wildlife Refuge ranks 31st at about 10%. The best odds are in Chapada dos Guimarães National Park (Brazil, about 30%), Emas National Park (Brazil, about 20%) and Rincón de la Vieja National Park (Costa Rica, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Pauraque is recorded against all the birds logged in Ostional Wildlife Refuge (57 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.
