Laughing Falcon
Laughing FalconLaughing FalconLaughing FalconLaughing Falcon

Laughing Falcon

Herpetotheres cachinnans

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Tikal National Park
157 Verified sightings at Tikal National Park From 2019 to 2026
12,581 Verified sightings across all 76 parks From 2019 to 2026
September Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Laughing Falcon

The laughing falcon (Herpetotheres cachinnans) is a medium-sized bird of prey in subfamily Herpetotherinae of family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found from Mexico south through Central America and in every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

The laughing falcon was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with the falcons and eagles in the genus Falco and coined the binomial name Falco cachinnans. Linnaeus based his account on information from one of his students, Daniel Rolander, who had visited the Dutch colony of Surinam in South America. The laughing falcon is now the only species placed in the genus Herpetotheres that was introduced in 1817 by the French ornithologist Louis Vieillot. A 2015 molecular phylogenetic study by Jérôme Fuchs and collaborators found that the laughing falcon was sister to the forest falcons in the genus Micrastur.

Major taxonomic systems place the laughing falcon in the subfamily Herpetotherinae with the forest falcons. Earlier it had been placed in the subfamily Falconinae with the "true" falcons. Though... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Tikal National Park

Orange-breasted Falcon
NT

Orange-breasted Falcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco deiroleucus

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
Barred Forest Falcon
LC

Barred Forest Falcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Micrastur ruficollis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Bat Falcon
LC

Bat Falcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco rufigularis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Collared Forest Falcon
LC

Collared Forest Falcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Micrastur semitorquatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Crested Caracara
LC

Crested Caracara

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Caracara plancus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Peregrine Falcon
LC

Peregrine Falcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco peregrinus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
American Kestrel
LC Endemic

American Kestrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco sparverius

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

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 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
2 Emas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
3 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
4 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
5 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
~20%
6 Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
7 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
8 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
9 Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
10 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
11 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
12 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
13 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
14 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
15 Lago de Yojoa 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
16 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
17 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
18 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
19 Celaque National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
20 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
21 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
22 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
23 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
24 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
25 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
26 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
27 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
28 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
29 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
30 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
31 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
32 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
33 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
34 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
35 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
36 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
37 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
38 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
39 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
~10%
40 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
41 Biotopo Cerro Cahuí 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~10%
42 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
43 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
44 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
45 Madidi National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
<5%
46 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
47 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
48 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
49 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
50 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
51 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
52 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
53 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
54 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
55 Canaima National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
56 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
57 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
58 La Tigra National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
59 Cordillera Azul National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%
60 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
61 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
62 Chingaza National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
63 Puracé National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
64 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
65 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
66 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
67 Podocarpus National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
68 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
69 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
70 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
71 Noel Kempff Mercado National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
Insufficient data
72 Brownsberg Nature Park 🇸🇷 Suriname
Insufficient data
73 Cusuco National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
Insufficient data
74 El Triunfo 🇲🇽 Mexico
Insufficient data
75 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
76 Masaya Volcano National Park 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Laughing Falcon in Tikal National Park?

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Laughing Falcon sighting in Tikal National Park, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Laughing Falcon in Tikal National Park?

September has the highest sighting rate for Laughing Falcon in Tikal National Park in our monthly data.

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