Melanerpes hoffmannii
Silhouette: Jason Dilworth · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Hoffmann's woodpecker (Melanerpes hoffmannii) is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found from Honduras south to Costa Rica. Hoffmann's woodpecker was originally described in genus Centurus. Some authors have treated it as a subspecies of the golden-fronted woodpecker (M. aurifrons), and the two hybridize in the north of Hoffmann's range. Hoffmann's also hybridizes with the red-crowned woodpecker (M. rubricapilus) in the south.
Hoffmann's woodpecker is monotypic. The species is named for the German naturalist Karl Hoffmann. Hoffmann's woodpecker is 18 to 21 cm (7.1 to 8.3 in) long and weighs 62 to 84 g (2.2 to 3.0 oz). The sexes' plumage is alike except for their head pattern. Adult males have a dull white forecrown and supercilium, a bright red crown, and a bright yellow or orange nape. Adult females have a dull white crown and a pale yellow nape. Both sexes' faces and the sides of their throat are drab yellowish gray. Their back and upper rump are barred black and white and the lower rump and uppertail coverts are unbarred white. Their flight feathers are black with white bars throughout... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Masaya Volcano National Park | 🇳🇮 Nicaragua | |
| 2 | Santa Rosa National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Ostional Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Las Baulas Marine National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | Carara National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Rincón de la Vieja National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Palo Verde National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 11 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 12 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 13 | Manuel Antonio National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 14 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 15 | Poás Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 16 | Marino Ballena National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 17 | Tortuguero National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 18 | Los Quetzales National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Hoffmann's Woodpecker sighting in Poás Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 74 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 147th 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.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Hoffmann's Woodpecker in Poás Volcano National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hoffmann's 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.
15th of 18
Of the 18 parks where we can rate Hoffmann's Woodpecker sightings, Poás Volcano National Park ranks 15th at under 5%. The best odds are in Masaya Volcano National Park (Nicaragua, about 80%), Santa Rosa National Park (Costa Rica, about 60%) and Ostional Wildlife Refuge (Costa Rica, about 60%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hoffmann's Woodpecker is recorded against all the birds logged in Poás Volcano National Park (74 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.
