Micrastur mirandollei
Silhouette: Unknown (photo), John E. McCormack, Michael G. Harvey, Brant C. Faircloth, Nicholas G. Crawford, Travis C. Glenn, Robb T. Brumfield & T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The slaty-backed forest falcon (Micrastur mirandollei) is a species of bird of prey in subfamily Herpetotherinae of family Falconidae, the falcons, and caracaras. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, and every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The slaty-backed, collared, and Buckley's forest falcons are sister species. The slaty-backed forest falcon is monotypic. The population in Central America and western Colombia and Ecuador, has at times been treated as the subspecies M. m. extimus, but this separation has not been widely recognized.
The slaty-backed forest falcon is 40 to 45 cm (16 to 18 in) long. Males weigh about 420 g (15 oz) and females about 500 to 556 g (18 to 20 oz). Its wingspan is 65 to 71 cm (26 to 28 in). Adults have slate gray upperparts, and are darker on the crown and lighter on the cheeks. Their throats and underparts are white to cream, and plain but for a few dark feather shafts making streaks. Their tail is dark slate gray with a white tip and three narrow white bars that often are indistinct. Their iris is yellowish brown to dark brown, its cere greenish yellow, and... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Cahuita National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 5 | Tambopata National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 6 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 7 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Slaty-backed Forest Falcon sighting in Soberanía National Park on a given day, based on 447 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 232nd most-seen of the 449 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January, May–June, August and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Slaty-backed Forest Falcon in Soberanía National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February–April, July, September and November–December, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Slaty-backed Forest Falcon sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 7 parks where we can rate Slaty-backed Forest Falcon sightings, Soberanía National Park has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge (Costa Rica, under 5%) and Cahuita National Park (Costa Rica, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Slaty-backed Forest Falcon is recorded against all the birds logged in Soberanía National Park (447 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.
