Rufous-winged Tanager

How to find it

Start on the Caribbean slope, at lower elevations, since the species is mostly found below 500 m. Listen for a singing male, then scan the upper levels of the forest, where one was found perched high up at Veragua Rainforest. Check forest edges as well as the canopy itself. Expect the female to appear soon after the male. Fruit feeders, trails and a lookout tower near Arenal Volcano add chances to find tanagers.

How to recognise it

The male has a grayish-blue back and white underparts, with odd spots on the crown.

The female looks very different, with an olive-brown back and a chestnut cap. Learn both before you start scanning the treetops, because a first-time birder may not link the two.

The name points to the mark that matters: rufous on the wings.

The Costa Rican race, cara, has blue on the belly but not on the throat or breast. The South American nominate race has a blue line down the centre of the throat to the breast.

What it sounds like

Recording: Niels Krabbe, CC BY-SA 4.0, source, read 5 Nov 2026.

Behaviour and diet

A trip report from Veragua Rainforest tells of a birder who spent a couple of frantic minutes searching before finding a male singing high up in front of him. His female soon joined him. Across Central America the species lives in the canopy and forest edges, so the upper levels are where to expect it. It also uses badly degraded forest. Tangara tanagers as a group take insects from leaves and sometimes catch them in flight.

Where it lives

In Central America this tanager lives in the canopy and edges of humid tropical forest, mostly below 500 m, with a few reaching 1000 m. It also uses badly degraded forest.

In Costa Rica it is on the Caribbean slope. Veragua Rainforest in Limón is a named place to see it, and a photo record exists from near La Fortuna, Alajuela, in February 2024.

Similar birds

It looks like the Bay-headed Tanager, but the Rufous-winged shows rufous on the wings. It is also generally found at lower altitudes. The two are sister species in the same close group of tanagers, and the Bay-headed also lives in Costa Rica, so check the wings.

Names and lore in Costa Rica

Costa Rica's official Spanish name is Tangara Alirrufa. Another Spanish name listed for the species in general is Tángara de Cuello Dorado.

Status and conservation

It is a resident on the AOCR list, and BirdLife International lists it as Least Concern.

Photography tips

Scan the upper levels once you hear a singing male, and wait for the female to join him. Stocked fruit feeders and an observation deck near Arenal Volcano are places where tanagers can come into view.