Scaly-breasted Hummingbird

Scaly-breasted Hummingbird

Phaeochroa cuvierii

Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Piedras Blancas National Park

In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%

437 Verified sightings at Piedras Blancas National Park From 2019 to 2026
10,375 In all 29 parks
March Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird

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 →

Sounds

Song1:28

Guatemala · 2024

© Peter Boesman · XC880227 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:04

Costa Rica · 2012

© Mike Nelson · XC107043 · CC BY-NC-ND 2.5

Song0:21

Panama · 2022

© Teus Luijendijk · XC712248 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
2 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
3 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
4 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
5 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
6 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
7 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
8 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
9 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
10 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
~10%
11 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
12 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
13 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
14 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
15 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
16 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
17 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
18 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
19 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
20 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
21 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
22 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
23 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
24 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
25 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
26 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
27 Volcán Barú National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
28 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
29 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Panama City 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
2 San José 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird in Piedras Blancas National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sighting in Piedras Blancas National Park on a given day, based on 437 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 85th most-seen of the 344 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.

When is the best time to see a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird in Piedras Blancas National Park?

March–April and October

In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird in Piedras Blancas National Park on a given day, against about 10% in February, June, August and November, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird?

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.

Is Piedras Blancas National Park the best place to see a Scaly-breasted Hummingbird?

4th of 29

Of the 29 parks where we can rate Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sightings, Piedras Blancas National Park ranks 4th at about 20%. 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%).

Which relatives of the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird live in Piedras Blancas National Park?

Same family: Trochilidae

The closest relatives of the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird that you can see in Piedras Blancas National Park (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (about 50%), Charming Hummingbird (about 40%) and Long-billed Hermit (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Scaly-breasted Hummingbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Piedras Blancas National Park (437 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.

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