The rufous-headed chachalaca (''Ortalis erythroptera'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family

Cracidae The chachalacas, guans and curassows are birds in the family Cracidae. These are species of tropical and subtropical Central and South America. The range of one species, the plain chachalaca, just reaches southernmost parts of Texas in the Unite ...

, the chachalacas, guans, and curassows. It is found in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

, and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 24 August 2021. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved August 24, 2021

Taxonomy and systematics

The rufous-headed chachalaca is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

Description

The rufous-headed chachalaca is long and weighs . It has a rufous head and neck and gray-brown back. The central tail feathers are dark gray and the outer ones gray near the body and chestnut on their outer halves. The lower breast and belly are creamy white. The primary flight feathers are bright chestnut. Its brown eye is surrounded by bare bluish gray skin. The legs are pale blue.del Hoyo, J. and G. M. Kirwan (2020). Rufous-headed Chachalaca (''Ortalis erythroptera''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.ruhcha1.01 retrieved September 28, 2021

Distribution and habitat

The rufous-headed chachalaca is found in extreme southwestern Colombia, extreme northwestern Peru, and in several small to medium-sized areas in western Ecuador. It inhabits dry, but not arid, deciduous forest and

cloudforest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...

in the coastal zone and Andean foothills. There are unconfirmed reports from savannah and brushy habitats. In elevation it generally ranges from sea level to but has been seen as high as and heard near .

Behavior

Feeding

The rufous-headed chachalaca typically forages in groups of two to seven. Its known diet is only fruit but it may also include leaves.

Breeding

The rufous-headed chachalaca's breeding season appears to parallel the January to May rainy season. Captive birds lay clutches of three eggs.

Vocalization

The rufous-headed chachalaca is most vocal from before dawn into the early morning. Its principal call is a "raucous, repeated 'kwak-ar-ar-ar', 'cha-cha-kaw' or shriller 'kra-kra-kra'", and is usually initiated by the male. Pairs give several calls "including a soft cooing or clucking, harsh 'cow', and fast, repeated 'kawuck'."

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed the rufous-headed chachalaca as Vulnerable. Its range is fragmented and its population small and declining.

Habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

and hunting are the primary threats.

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1261192 rufous-headed chachalaca Birds of Ecuador Birds of Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena rufous-headed chachalaca rufous-headed chachalaca rufous-headed chachalaca Taxonomy articles created by Polbot