White-lored Gnatcatcher

How to find it

Look in tropical dry forest and scrub in the Pacific lowlands of Guanacaste. Open fields with scattered trees are called reliable habitat for it. Watch for a tiny gray and white bird with a cocked tail twisting through the foliage. Once you find one, stay put and look nearby, because the pair usually stays close together and the second bird makes identification easier. Be ready for a brief view: one birder got only a single clear look at a male in a Guanacaste tree.

How to recognise it

This is a very small bird, about 11 to 12 cm long and 6 to 9 g. These sizes describe the species in general.

Males show:

- a black cap and black tail

- gray upperparts

- white sides and off-white underparts

- white outer tail feathers

- a white throat, shading to pale bluish gray on the breast and flanks

Females have no black cap and show white lores, the patch between eye and bill, which are usually easy to see.

In Costa Rica a breeding male has no white eyebrow, and a non-breeding bird has only a narrow one. A male in non-breeding plumage was photographed at Playa Azul, Tarcoles.

What it sounds like

Recording: Oliver Komar, CC BY-SA 4.0, source, read 5 Nov 2026.

Behaviour and diet

Gnatcatchers are tiny and constantly on the move. They often forage with the tail cocked or flicking, twisting and turning on a perch before they jump or flutter to the next one.

This species searches actively through foliage for prey. It eats insects such as beetles, bugs, leafhoppers, caterpillars and moths, and it also takes spiders.

The two birds of a pair usually stay close together.

Where it lives

Across its range the White-lored Gnatcatcher mainly lives in low woodland and scrub, and it is mostly found below about 1,000 m elevation.

In Costa Rica it lives in the northwest, on the Pacific side, in tropical dry forest and scrub in the Pacific lowlands. A birder's blog says Guanacaste is the only part of the country where it occurs.

Open fields with scattered trees are the most common Guanacaste habitat, and a birding blog calls them reliable for this bird.

When to see it

The species breeds from March to August across its range, though it is not stated whether that applies to Costa Rica.

Similar birds

Two other gnatcatchers are the ones to check against in Costa Rica, the Tropical Gnatcatcher and the White-browed Gnatcatcher. The Tropical Gnatcatcher is found throughout the country, so the two overlap in Guanacaste. It has a broad white eyebrow, which a breeding male White-lored lacks.

Names and lore in Costa Rica

Costa Ricans and Nicaraguans call it Perlita Cabecinegra. A Costa Rican species list also gives Cazadora, and Espatulilla appears on the AOCR list. Perlita Cejiblanca is also in use, Honduras uses Monjita Loriblanco, and Mexico uses Perlita Pispirria.

Status and conservation

The AOCR list gives it as a resident in Costa Rica, and the IUCN rates it Least Concern.

Photography tips

Find one bird and wait, because its mate usually stays close by. Open fields with scattered trees give clear views in Guanacaste. Expect brief looks: one birder had a single clear view of a male in a bare tree, with a Plain-capped Starthroat perched next to it.