#curassows

[na-bird-of-the-day]

BOTD: Great Curassow

Photo: Croftylock

"The Great Curassow is a big bird, about the size of a domestic turkey, and is prized by local people for its meat. Overhunting and habitat loss have made this species quite shy. A good look at a male Great Curassow reveals a handsome bird with glossy black plumage and a crest of forward-curling feathers. This species is the largest and most northerly occurring of the mostly tropical curassow tribe."

- American Bird Conservancy

[tharook]

Great Curassow (Crax rubra)

[thalassarche]

Nocturnal Curassow (Nothocrax urumutum) - photo by writhedhornbill

[thalassarche]

Bare-faced Curassow (Crax fasciolata) - photo by Dirk van Mourik

[thalassarche]

Nocturnal Curassow (Nothocrax urumutum) - photo by writhedhornbill

[fear-the-hippo]

IUCN Highlight

Today’s Highlight: Alagoas Curassow; Mitu mitu

Status: Extinct in the wild

Causes: Deforestation and habitat loss, overhunting

Habitat: Tropical and subtropical forests of northeastern Brazil

Diet: Fruits (particularly Tulpay and Castelo) and nuts

Fun Facts: Of the 130 (as of 2013) captive specimens, it’s estimated that only 12 are purebred Alagoas Curassows. In order to avoid a genetic bottleneck and inbreeding, many have been hybridized with the closely related razor-billed curassow.

[thalassarche]

Great Curassow (Crax rubra) - photo by Jan Lewis

[thalassarche]

Great Curassow (Crax rubra) - photo by Kevin B. Agar