Whooping Motmot

Whooping Motmot

Momotus subrufescens

Silhouette: Sofía Terán Sánchez · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
at San Lorenzo Protected Forest
1 Verified sightings at San Lorenzo Protected Forest From 2019 to 2026
5,809 Verified sightings across all 9 parks From 2019 to 2026
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Whooping Motmot

The whooping motmot (Momotus subrufescens) is a colorful near-passerine bird in the family Momotidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela. The whooping motmot and the blue-capped (Momotus coeruleiceps), Trinidad (M. bahamensis), Amazonian (M. momota), Lesson's (M. lessonii), and Andean motmots (M. aequatorialis) were at one time all considered conspecific. They were split following a 2009 publication which detailed their differences. The whooping motmot has four recognized subspecies, the nominate Momotus subrufescens subrufescens, M. s. spatha, M. s. osgoodi, and M. s. agenticinctus.

The whooping motmot's back and wings are olive-green and the underparts dull brown. It has a long, green to blue, tail that has extended feathers with racquet tips that are blue tipped with black. Its crown is black surrounded by a blue band, and it has a black eyemask bordered with turquoise. Twenty-seven specimens of the nominate whooping motmot weighed 75 to 124 g (2.6 to 4.4 oz).

The whooping motmot has two disjunct populations. The nominate subspecies is found from eastern Panama to northern and... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~30%
2 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~30%
3 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~20%
4 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
5 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
6 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
7 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
8 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
Insufficient data
9 Puracé National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
Insufficient data
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