Blue Bunting
Cyanocompsa parellina
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyCardinalidae (Cardinals and Allies)
- GenusCyanocompsa (Blue Buntings)
- SpeciesCyanocompsa parellina (Blue Bunting)
About the Blue Bunting
The blue bunting (Cyanocompsa parellina) is a species of passerine in the family Cardinalidae, the cardinals or cardinal grosbeaks. It is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua. French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte described the blue bunting in 1850 as Passerina parellina, and then Cyanoloxia parellina. German ornithologist Jean Cabanis defined the genus Cyanocompsa in 1861, giving it its current binomial name.
The blue bunting is the only member of its genus. It has four subspecies, the nominate Cyanocompsa parellina parellina, C. p. beneplacita, C. p. indigotica, and C. p. lucida. The last is sometimes included in C. p. beneplacita.
The nominate subspecies of blue bunting is 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) long. Males weigh 11 to 24 g (0.39 to 0.85 oz) and females 9.8 to 21 g (0.35 to 0.74 oz). The nominate male is various shades of blue, sky blue on the forehead and cheek, blackish blue on the upperparts, ultramarine on the rump, and the underparts from chin to belly deep blue. The adult and immature females are overall dull brownish, with a reddish tinge to the belly. The immature male is overall... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Tikal National Park
Blue-black Grosbeak
Cyanocompsa cyanoides
Summer Tanager
Piranga rubra
Red-crowned Ant-Tanager
Habia rubica
Gray-throated Chat
Granatellus sallaei
Indigo Bunting
Passerina cyanea
Rose-throated Tanager
Piranga roseogularis
Black-faced Grosbeak
Caryothraustes poliogaster
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Pheucticus ludovicianus
Painted Bunting
Passerina ciris
Blue Grosbeak
Passerina caerulea
Scarlet Tanager
Piranga olivacea
Dickcissel
Spiza americana
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calakmul Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | Tikal National Park | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 4 | Biotopo Cerro Cahuí | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 5 | Cañón del Sumidero National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 6 | Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Celestún Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 8 | Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Blue Bunting in Tikal National Park?
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Blue Bunting sighting in Tikal National Park, based on 332 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Blue Bunting in Tikal National Park?
July has the highest sighting rate for Blue Bunting in Tikal National Park in our monthly data.