Leuconotopicus fumigatus
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The smoky-brown woodpecker (Leuconotopicus fumigatus) is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.
The species was first described by the French naturalist Alcide d'Orbigny as Picus fumigatus, based on individuals observed in the Province of Corrientes in Argentina, and later in Santa Cruz de la Sierra in Bolivia. Since its original description it has successively been placed in genus Leuconotopicus and Picoides and then returned to Leuconopticus. The International Ornithological Committee and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World retain it in that genus. However, starting in 2018, the American Ornithological Society and the Clements taxonomy moved all species of genus Leuconotopicus into genus Dryobates.
The genus name Leuconotopicus derives from the Ancient Greek leukos (white), noton (back) and pikos (woodpecker). The specific epithet fumigatus is Latin for smoked. The taxonomic systems recognize these five subspecies: Wikipedia →
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Smoky-brown Woodpecker sighting in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park on a given day, based on 258 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 240th most-seen of the 467 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.
August and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Smoky-brown Woodpecker in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September and November–July, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Smoky-brown 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 25
Of the 25 parks where we can rate Smoky-brown Woodpecker sightings, Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park ranks 15th at under 5%. The best odds are in Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (Belize, about 20%), Tikal National Park (Guatemala, about 20%) and Arenal Volcano National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Smoky-brown Woodpecker is recorded against all the birds logged in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park (258 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.
