Sickle-winged Guan vs Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Chamaepetes goudotii compared with Ortalis ruficauda
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Sickle-winged Guan | Rufous-vented Chachalaca |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Chamaepetes goudotii | Ortalis ruficauda |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 50.7 cm (20.0 in) | 44.0 cm (17.3 in) |
| Weight | 702.0 g (24.76 oz) | 604.4 g (21.32 oz) |
| Diet | Frugivorous; eats fruits, berries, seeds, and leaves in Andean foothill and montane forests. Forages at … | Eats fruits, berries, leaves, flowers, and small insects in Venezuelan forest edges, scrub, and coastal … |
| Clutch Size | 2-3 | 3-4 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Sickle-winged Guan
Emits a loud, resonant cackling call and loud wing-whirring. The guan call carries through Andean cloud forest; wing-whirring display flight is a diagnostic feature in the mountains.
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Produces a loud, raucous chachalaca chorus; individual notes are slightly harsher than Plain Chachalaca. Dawn choruses ring across Venezuelan and Trinidadian dry forest and forest edge.
Geographic Range & Migration
Sickle-winged Guan
Resident in the Andes from Colombia south to Bolivia at 1,500-3,400 m. Found in humid cloud forest.
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Resident in northern Venezuela and Trinidad. Found in dry forest, scrub, and woodland edges in lowland areas.
Conservation Status
Sickle-winged Guan
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
How to Tell Them Apart
Sickle-winged Guan
Dark chestnut-brown above and on breast; lower belly rufous-chestnut; bare blue facial skin around eye; wings distinctively curved sickle-like; no wattle; tail dark brown.
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Olive-brown above; grey head; bare reddish throat; underparts buff-grey grading to rich rufous-cinnamon on vent and undertail coverts; tail dark brown with buff-tipped outer feathers.
About These Birds
Sickle-winged Guan
A medium-sized cracid (~700 g) of family Cracidae, with sickle-shaped outer primaries and blue facial skin. Inhabits humid Andean cloud forests and forest edges from Colombia to Bolivia at 900–3,000 m elevation. Arboreal, feeding mainly on small fruits and berries. Least Concern; widely distributed in the Andean cloud forest zone and common in undisturbed montane habitats.
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
A medium-sized cracid (~605 g) of family Cracidae, with rufous undertail coverts and a bare red throat. Found in forest edges, thorn scrub, and deciduous woodland in Venezuela and Trinidad. Forages in groups for fruits, seeds, and leaves. Least Concern; a familiar bird in Venezuela, adapted to disturbed habitats and gardens as well as natural scrublands.