Bare-faced Curassow vs Grey-headed Chachalaca
Crax fasciolata compared with Ortalis cinereiceps
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Bare-faced Curassow | Grey-headed Chachalaca |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Crax fasciolata | Ortalis cinereiceps |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Vulnerable | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 71.0 cm (28.0 in) | 41.1 cm (16.2 in) |
| Weight | 2580.0 g (91.01 oz) | 566.5 g (19.98 oz) |
| Diet | Frugivorous; eats large fallen fruits, seeds, and invertebrates on ground in Brazilian Cerrado, pantanal, and … | Frugivorous and folivorous; eats fruits, berries, leaves, and buds in Central American forest edges and … |
| Clutch Size | 2-3 | 3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Bare-faced Curassow
Produces a deep, resonant booming call; male and female give guttural clucking contact calls. Calls carry through Brazilian Cerrado and gallery forest at dawn.
Grey-headed Chachalaca
Produces a loud, raucous cha-cha-lac chorus at dawn; individual notes are hoarser and lower than Plain Chachalaca. Groups call antiphonally from treetops in Central American forest edge.
Geographic Range & Migration
Bare-faced Curassow
Resident in central South America from Brazil south to Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina. Found in cerrado, dry forest, and gallery woodland.
Grey-headed Chachalaca
Resident from Honduras south through Central America to Panama and northwestern Colombia. Found in humid forest and dense vegetation.
Conservation Status
Bare-faced Curassow
Grey-headed Chachalaca
How to Tell Them Apart
Bare-faced Curassow
Male is glossy black with white belly; curly crest; large area of bare yellow facial skin; yellow bill with no knob. Female is black barred with chestnut; extensive bare facial …
Grey-headed Chachalaca
Olive-brown body; head and neck distinctly grey contrasting with brownish back; bare reddish throat skin; underparts pale buff-grey; tail graduated, brown with paler tips on outer feathers.
About These Birds
Bare-faced Curassow
A large cracid (~2.6 kg) of family Cracidae, with bare yellow facial skin around the eye and a yellow-based bill. Inhabits gallery forests, cerrado woodland, and humid tropical forests of the Brazilian interior, Bolivia, and Paraguay. Forages on the forest floor and lower canopy. Vulnerable due to extensive cerrado and gallery forest clearing and hunting pressure.
Grey-headed Chachalaca
A medium-sized cracid (~565 g) of family Cracidae, with a distinctive grey head and olive-brown body. Inhabits humid tropical forests, forest edges, and scrublands from Honduras south to northwestern Colombia. Forages in groups for fruits, berries, leaves, and insects in the understory and canopy. Least Concern; common throughout its range in Central American lowlands.