Elaenia chiriquensis
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The lesser elaenia (Elaenia chiriquensis) is a species of bird in subfamily Elaeniinae of family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, on Trinidad, in every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay, and as a vagrant on Bonaire and Curaçao.
What is now Coopmans's elaenia (E. brachyptera) was previously a third subspecies of it. Based on a study published in 2015, taxonomic systems recognized it as a species starting in 2016. The lesser elaenia is 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) long and weighs 11.5 to 22 g (0.41 to 0.78 oz). It is a small elaenia with a small squarish crest. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a grayish olive head with lighter cheeks, a thin whitish eyering, and a partially hidden white patch on the crown. Their upperparts are grayish olive. Their wings are mostly dusky with whitish edges on the flight feathers. The tips of the coverts are white and show as two wide bars on the closed wing. Their tail is dusky. Their... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Serra da Canastra National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Coiba National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 4 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 5 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 6 | Chapada dos Guimarães National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Chagres National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 8 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Chapada Diamantina National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Parque Natural Metropolitano | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 11 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 12 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 13 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 14 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 15 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 16 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | João Pessoa | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Salvador | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | Caracas | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 5 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 6 | Cali | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 7 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lesser Elaenia sighting in Serra da Canastra National Park on a given day, based on 62 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 146th most-seen of the 294 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Lesser Elaenia in Serra da Canastra National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February, May and July–August, the lowest months. That is one of Serra da Canastra National Park's wettest months, with about 240 mm of rain against almost none in July.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lesser Elaenia sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 16
Of the 16 parks where we can rate Lesser Elaenia sightings, Serra da Canastra National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Emas National Park (Brazil, about 20%).
Same genus: Elaenia
The closest relatives of the Lesser Elaenia that you can see in Serra da Canastra National Park (genus Elaenia, Typical Elaenias) are Yellow-bellied Elaenia (about 40%), Plain-crested Elaenia (about 30%) and Small-headed Elaenia (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lesser Elaenia is recorded against all the birds logged in Serra da Canastra National Park (62 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.
