Megascops choliba
Silhouette: Jason Dilworth · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The tropical screech owl (Megascops choliba) is a small species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, Trinidad, and every mainland South American country. The taxonomy of genus Megascops is somewhat unsettled. A 2015 publication proposed that the tropical screech owl's closest relatives are the white-throated screech owl (M. albogularis) and Koepcke's screech owl (M. koepckeae). However, the International Ornithological Committee (IOC) has not accepted that assessment.
The tropical screech owl is polymorphic, with much variation in color. It is overall gray-brown or (less commonly) brown or rufous, but always with a relatively distinctive... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Bogota | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 3 | Cali | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 6 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 7 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Montevideo | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | |
| 9 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 10 | Caracas | 🇻🇪 Venezuela |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque das Aves | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Parque Municipal Summit | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Lisbon Zoo | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 4 | Ecopark | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 5 | Bosque Rodrigues Alves | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Amaru | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 7 | Seville Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 8 | Mangal das Garças | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Small Breeds Farm Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 10 | Parque dos Falcões | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 11 | Falkecenter Samsø ApS | 🇩🇰 Denmark | |
| 12 | GüiráOga | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Screech-Owl sighting in Serra dos Órgãos National Park on a given day, based on 77 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 151st most-seen of the 336 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.
January and May–June
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Screech-Owl in Serra dos Órgãos National Park on a given day, against about 10% in February–April and July–December, the lowest months.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Tropical Screech-Owl sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
6th of 37
Of the 37 parks where we can rate Tropical Screech-Owl sightings, Serra dos Órgãos National Park ranks 6th at about 10%. The best odds are in Caroni Swamp (Trinidad and Tobago, about 50%), Emas National Park (Brazil, about 30%) and El Impenetrable National Park (Argentina, about 20%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Strigidae
The closest relatives of the Tropical Screech-Owl that you can see in Serra dos Órgãos National Park (family Strigidae, Typical Owls) are Least Pygmy-Owl (about 10%), Tawny-browed Owl (about 10%) and Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Tropical Screech-Owl is recorded against all the birds logged in Serra dos Órgãos National Park (77 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.
