Rufous-vented Chachalaca vs Red-faced Guan
Ortalis ruficauda compared with Penelope dabbenei
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Rufous-vented Chachalaca | Red-faced Guan |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Ortalis ruficauda | Penelope dabbenei |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 44.0 cm (17.3 in) | 56.7 cm (22.3 in) |
| Weight | 604.4 g (21.32 oz) | 1230.0 g (43.39 oz) |
| Diet | Eats fruits, berries, leaves, flowers, and small insects in Venezuelan forest edges, scrub, and coastal … | Frugivorous; eats fruits, berries, seeds, and leaves in Andean foothills forests of Bolivia and northwestern … |
| Clutch Size | 3-4 | 3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
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.
Red-faced Guan
Produces a loud, resonant honking cackle and wing-whirring display. Calls carry through Bolivian and Argentinian Yungas cloud forest; wing-whirring is a diagnostic display.
Geographic Range & Migration
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Resident in northern Venezuela and Trinidad. Found in dry forest, scrub, and woodland edges in lowland areas.
Red-faced Guan
Resident in the foothills and mountains of northwestern Argentina and adjacent Bolivia at 500-1,800 m. Found in humid Yungas forest.
Conservation Status
Rufous-vented Chachalaca
Red-faced Guan
How to Tell Them Apart
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.
Red-faced Guan
Dark brownish-olive; extensive bare bright red facial skin from lores to ear-coverts (larger than other guans); throat red-wattled; breast finely streaked white; lower belly rufous; tail dark.
About These Birds
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.
Red-faced Guan
A large cracid (~1.2 kg) of family Cracidae, with distinctive red bare facial skin. Inhabits montane humid forests of the eastern Andes in Bolivia and northwestern Argentina at 900–2,500 m elevation. Arboreal, foraging for fruits, seeds, and buds in the forest canopy. Least Concern; relatively restricted range in the Yungas forest zone but not considered under immediate threat.