Celeus castaneus
Silhouette: Pepe Reigada · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The chestnut-colored woodpecker (Celeus castaneus) is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. The chestnut-colored woodpecker is monotypic.
The chestnut-colored woodpecker is 21.5 to 25 cm (8.5 to 9.8 in) long and weighs 80 to 105 g (2.8 to 3.7 oz). Both sexes' heads are dull ochraceous or tawny with a pointed crest. Males are bright red from the lores to behind the eye and down to the throat; the chin and upper throat sometimes also have some red. Females have no red. Both sexes of adults have rufous-chestnut upperparts with a cinnamon-buff rump and black bars on the back and uppertail coverts. Their flight feathers are rufous-chestnut with some dusky brown tips. Their tail feathers are dull black with chestnut bases. Their underparts are chestnut heavily marked with black "V" or "U" shapes. Individuals have some variation in the intensity of the black markings, especially the bars on their upperparts. The adult's bill is ivory-yellow with a blue-green tinge at its base, their iris chestnut or garnet brown, and their... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tikal National Park | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 2 | Pico Bonito National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 3 | Tortuguero National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 5 | Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇧🇿 Belize | |
| 6 | Calakmul Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 9 | Biotopo Cerro Cahuí | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 10 | Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 11 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 12 | Bastimentos Island National Marine Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 13 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-colored Woodpecker sighting in Pico Bonito National Park on a given day, based on 269 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 54th most-seen of the 271 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and December
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Chestnut-colored Woodpecker in Pico Bonito National Park on a given day, against about 10% in September, the lowest month.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chestnut-colored 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.
Among the best
Of the 13 parks where we can rate Chestnut-colored Woodpecker sightings, Pico Bonito National Park ranks 2nd at about 30%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Tikal National Park (Guatemala, about 30%).
Same family: Picidae
The closest relatives of the Chestnut-colored Woodpecker that you can see in Pico Bonito National Park (family Picidae, Woodpeckers) are Golden-fronted Woodpecker (about 60%), Black-cheeked Woodpecker (about 30%) and Pale-billed Woodpecker (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chestnut-colored Woodpecker is recorded against all the birds logged in Pico Bonito National Park (269 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.
