Black-Headed Saltator

This continues our morning in Tikal NP in Guatemala on March 19, 2026. Rony, our guide, spotted some green jays and I was having real difficulty getting a clear photo. I ultimately got enough lousy photos to make an identification, but again was surprised at the result. When I got home and submitted my photos to iNaturalist it identified the bird as a black-headed saltator and the buff-throated saltator was the only other option given, no green jay. So far there has been one verification of my iNaturalist identification. This was not due to bad light as the sun was fully out, but it was moving around a lot in thick trees. 

This is by far the best photo. 

It is a member of the tanager family. It has a slate-gray head with a white supercilium; yellowish green upperparts; pale gray underparts; a white throat edged with black; and a black bill.  

Illustration of the nominate ssp. atriceps from Birds of the World. 

Range from Birds of the World. I saw the nominate ssp. atriceps which is found on the Caribbean slope of Mexico from southern Tamaulipas, south (except for southeastern Veracruz and north and central Yucatan Peninsula) to eastern Costa Rica.