Bare-faced Curassow vs Band-tailed Guan
Crax fasciolata compared with Penelope argyrotis
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Bare-faced Curassow | Band-tailed Guan |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Crax fasciolata | Penelope argyrotis |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Vulnerable | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 71.0 cm (28.0 in) | 52.8 cm (20.8 in) |
| Weight | 2580.0 g (91.01 oz) | 798.0 g (28.15 oz) |
| Diet | Frugivorous; eats large fallen fruits, seeds, and invertebrates on ground in Brazilian Cerrado, pantanal, and … | Frugivorous; eats fruits, berries, leaves, flowers, and buds in Andean forests of Venezuela and Colombia. … |
| Clutch Size | 2-3 | -- |
| 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.
Band-tailed Guan
Produces a loud, honking cackle and resonant wing-whirring in display flights. The deep, carrying honk and wing-whirr display is characteristic of this Andean Penelope guan.
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.
Band-tailed Guan
Resident in the Andes and mountains of Colombia and Venezuela from 1,000-2,400 m. Found in humid montane forest.
Conservation Status
Bare-faced Curassow
Band-tailed Guan
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 …
Band-tailed Guan
Brownish-black above with fine white streaking on neck and chest; bare red facial skin; lower underparts chestnut; tail broad with distinctive pale grey subterminal band.
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.
Band-tailed Guan
A medium-sized cracid (~800 g) of family Cracidae, with a distinctive pale-tipped tail band. Inhabits montane humid forests in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and Andes of Colombia and Venezuela. Arboreal, feeding on fruits, seeds, and buds in the canopy. Least Concern; restricted to Andean cloud forest but common within its range and tolerates some forest disturbance.