Long-tailed Tyrant

Long-tailed Tyrant

Colonia colonus

Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible
at Serra dos Órgãos National Park

In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%

183 Verified sightings at Serra dos Órgãos National Park From 2019 to 2026
7,864 In all 21 parks
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Long-tailed Tyrant

The long-tailed tyrant (Colonia colonus) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Central America from Honduras to Panama and in every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

The long-tailed tyrant was originally described as Muscicapa colonus, erroneously including it in the Old World flycatcher family. The long-tailed tyrant is the only member of genus Colonia. It has these five subspecies:

Adults weigh 15 to 18 g (0.53 to 0.63 oz). Adult males of the nominate subspecies C. c. colonus are mostly dull black with a white forehead and forecrown, a whitish rump, and a grayish black belly. Their central pair of tail feathers can extend up to 13 cm (5.1 in) beyond the others and have somewhat widened tips. They are often worn or broken... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:24

Brazil · 2026

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1080169 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:12

Colombia · 2021

© Mauricio Cuellar Ramirez (@Birding.travel) · XC614938 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:05

Ecuador · 2021

© Patricio Mena Valenzuela · XC863385 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
2 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
3 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~20%
4 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
5 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
6 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
7 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
8 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
9 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
10 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
11 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
12 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
13 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
14 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
15 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
16 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
17 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
18 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
19 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
20 Chingaza National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
21 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Goiânia 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
2 Belo Horizonte 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Long-tailed Tyrant in Serra dos Órgãos National Park?

Possible

About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Long-tailed Tyrant sighting in Serra dos Órgãos National Park on a given day, based on 183 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 86th most-seen of the 336 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.

When is the best time to see a Long-tailed Tyrant in Serra dos Órgãos National Park?

July

In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Long-tailed Tyrant in Serra dos Órgãos National Park on a given day, against about 10% in January, the lowest month. That is one of Serra dos Órgãos National Park's driest months, with about 50 mm of rain against 310 mm in November.

What time of day is best to see a Long-tailed Tyrant?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Long-tailed Tyrant 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 Serra dos Órgãos National Park the best place to see a Long-tailed Tyrant?

2nd of 21

Of the 21 parks where we can rate Long-tailed Tyrant sightings, Serra dos Órgãos National Park ranks 2nd at about 30%. The best odds are in Itatiaia National Park (Brazil, about 40%).

Which relatives of the Long-tailed Tyrant live in Serra dos Órgãos National Park?

Same family: Tyrannidae

The closest relatives of the Long-tailed Tyrant that you can see in Serra dos Órgãos National Park (family Tyrannidae, Tyrant Flycatchers) are Great Kiskadee (about 80%), Yellow-olive Flycatcher (about 50%) and Social Flycatcher (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Long-tailed Tyrant sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Long-tailed Tyrant is recorded against all the birds logged in Serra dos Órgãos National Park (183 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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