Rufous-headed Chachalaca vs Spix's Guan
Ortalis erythroptera compared with Penelope jacquacu
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Rufous-headed Chachalaca | Spix's Guan |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Ortalis erythroptera | Penelope jacquacu |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Vulnerable | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 43.8 cm (17.2 in) | 59.3 cm (23.3 in) |
| Weight | 632.5 g (22.31 oz) | 1469.5 g (51.84 oz) |
| Diet | Frugivorous; eats fruits, berries, seeds, and leaves in Pacific slope forests and forest edges of … | Frugivorous; eats fruits, berries, seeds, and leaves in Amazonian lowland forests. Forages in canopy and … |
| Clutch Size | 3 | 2-3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Rufous-headed Chachalaca
Emits a loud, raucous chachalaca chorus; individual calls are slightly higher than Rufous-vented. Dawn choruses carry across Ecuadorian and Peruvian coastal dry forest.
Spix's Guan
Produces a loud, resonant honking cackle; wing-whirring display is vigorous. Calls are deeper and louder than smaller guans; echoes through Amazonian terra firme canopy.
Geographic Range & Migration
Rufous-headed Chachalaca
Resident in western Ecuador and northwestern Peru. Found in tropical deciduous forest and scrub in the Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena region.
Spix's Guan
Resident in the Amazon Basin from Colombia and Venezuela south to Bolivia and Brazil. Found in lowland rainforest, especially along rivers.
Conservation Status
Rufous-headed Chachalaca
Spix's Guan
How to Tell Them Apart
Rufous-headed Chachalaca
Brownish-olive body; head and upper neck warm rufous-cinnamon, distinctly contrasting with greyish-brown back; bare reddish throat wattle; underparts pale buff; tail dark with pale outer tips.
Spix's Guan
Predominantly dark olive-brown; bare reddish throat wattle; neck and breast streaked white; lower belly and flanks rufous; wing coverts with fine pale edging; tail long, dark brown.
About These Birds
Rufous-headed Chachalaca
A medium-sized cracid (~630 g) of family Cracidae, with a striking rufous head. Inhabits humid and deciduous forests, forest edges, and scrub in western Ecuador and northwestern Peru. Feeds on fruits and leaves in the forest understory and canopy. Vulnerable due to extensive deforestation in the Tumbesian region, one of the world's most threatened biodiversity hotspots.
Spix's Guan
A large cracid (~1.5 kg) of family Cracidae, with olive-brown plumage and a red wattle. Inhabits lowland tropical rainforests across Amazonia in Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, and Venezuela. Arboreal, feeding heavily on fruits, seeds, and leaves in the canopy. Least Concern; widespread and relatively common in undisturbed Amazonian forest.