Megarynchus pitangua
Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The boat-billed flycatcher (Megarynchus pitangua) is a large member of the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Mexico, in every Central American country, on Trinidad, and in every mainland South American country though only as a vagrant in Chile.
The boat-billed flycatcher was originally described as Lanius pitangua, mistakenly placing it in the shrike family. It was eventually moved to its present genus Megarynchus that was erected in 1824. That name is from the Greek "μεγα" (mega) meaning "much" and "ῥυγχος" (rhunkhos) meaning "bill". The specific epithet derives from the Tupi language name for the bird, "Pitanguá guacú".
The boat-billed flycatcher is the only member of its genus and has these six subspecies: There are differences among the subspecies' vocalizations, leading some authors to state that "critical re-evaluation of [the] races is needed". The Clements taxonomy recognizes some distinctions within the species by calling... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rio de Janeiro | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Tegucigalpa | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 3 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Niterói | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Brasilia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Salvador | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Guayaquil | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aviario Nacional de Colombia | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Boat-billed Flycatcher sighting in Poás Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 86 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 137th most-seen of the 356 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.
May, July and September–October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Boat-billed Flycatcher in Poás Volcano National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June, August and November–April, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Boat-billed Flycatcher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
66th of 72
Of the 72 parks where we can rate Boat-billed Flycatcher sightings, Poás Volcano National Park ranks 66th at under 5%. The best odds are in Cañón del Sumidero National Park (Mexico, about 60%), Tijuca National Park (Brazil, about 50%) and Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park (Honduras, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Tyrannidae
The closest relatives of the Boat-billed Flycatcher that you can see in Poás Volcano National Park (family Tyrannidae, Tyrant Flycatchers) are Tropical Kingbird (about 20%), Mountain Elaenia (about 20%) and Great Kiskadee (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Boat-billed Flycatcher is recorded against all the birds logged in Poás Volcano National Park (86 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.
