Pygarrhichas albogularis
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The white-throated treerunner (Pygarrhichas albogularis) is a species of bird in the family Furnariidae. It is the only species in the genus Pygarrhichas. The white-throated treerunner is about 15 cm (5.9 in) long, with a stiff and rounded tail. The upperparts are dark brown, turning red on the lower back and tail and contrasting sharply with the throat and chest of a bright white. The rest of the underparts are coarsely mottled with white. The bill is long, slightly curved upwards. The general appearance is reminiscent of a nuthatch (Sitta spp.), although they are not directly related. Like the Sittidae, Furnariidae tirelessly scours the trunks and branches of old trees for the small arthropods that make up its food, spiraling up the trunks, or sometimes moving head down. The white-throated treerunner consumes small invertebrates found on bark and nests in tree cavities. Outside of the breeding season, it may form mixed-species foraging flocks with other bird species.
The White-throated treerunner inhabits the southern tip of the American continent, in Chile and Argentina, from Santiago and Mendoza to Tierra del Fuego. It seeks out forests with large trees – the old trunks offer suitable nesting sites – whether they are lowland or highland, dense or open. It was described in 1831 by Phillip Parker King, a British explorer of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. Its systematic placement has remained unclear within its family, superficial similarities with other Furnariidae gleaning their food from the bark of trees seem to be the result of an evolutionary convergence. Molecular phylogenies seem to link it to the genera Microxenops and Ochetorhynchus. No subspecies is described. Its range is relatively large and there is no evidence of decline in numbers, so the International Union for Conservation of Nature considers this bird to be of "least concern". Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 2 | Tierra del Fuego National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Nahuel Huapi National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 4 | Torres del Paine National Park | 🇨🇱 Chile |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-throated Treerunner sighting in Torres del Paine National Park on a given day, based on 99 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 64th most-seen of the 106 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July and December–April
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-throated Treerunner in Torres del Paine National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May–June and August–November, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-throated Treerunner sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate White-throated Treerunner sightings, Torres del Paine National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park (Chile, about 40%), Tierra del Fuego National Park (Argentina, about 40%) and Nahuel Huapi National Park (Argentina, about 30%).
Same family: Furnariidae
The closest relatives of the White-throated Treerunner that you can see in Torres del Paine National Park (family Furnariidae, Ovenbirds and Woodcreepers) are Thorn-tailed Rayadito (about 40%), Dark-bellied Cinclodes (about 20%) and Scale-throated Earthcreeper (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-throated Treerunner is recorded against all the birds logged in Torres del Paine National Park (99 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.
