Alagoas Curassow vs Dusky-legged Guan
Mitu mitu compared with Penelope obscura
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Alagoas Curassow | Dusky-legged Guan |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Mitu mitu | Penelope obscura |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae |
| Conservation Status | Extinct in the Wild | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 79.2 cm (31.2 in) | 61.9 cm (24.4 in) |
| Weight | 2852.5 g (100.62 oz) | 1530.0 g (53.97 oz) |
| Diet | Frugivorous; eats fruits, seeds, and invertebrates in the ground and forest understorey. Extinct in wild; … | Eats fruits, berries, seeds, leaves, and flowers in South American Atlantic forest and Araucaria forest. … |
| Clutch Size | 2-3 | 2-4 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Alagoas Curassow
Extirpated from wild (EW). Calls documented from captive birds: a deep, resonant booming similar to Razor-billed Curassow; flocks give low, guttural clucking contact calls.
Dusky-legged Guan
Emits a loud, resonant honking cackle and strong wing-whirring display. The deep, carrying call echoes through southern South American subtropical and humid forest.
Geographic Range & Migration
Alagoas Curassow
Endemic to northeastern Brazil in Alagoas. Extinct in the wild; survives only in captivity. Last wild record was 1980s.
Dusky-legged Guan
Resident in southeastern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northeastern Argentina. Found in Atlantic Forest and gallery woodland.
Conservation Status
Alagoas Curassow
Dusky-legged Guan
How to Tell Them Apart
Alagoas Curassow
Glossy black body; white lower belly and undertail; massive compressed red bill with orange-yellow tip; no head ornamentation. Now extinct in wild; the large red razor bill was its most …
Dusky-legged Guan
Dark brownish-olive above; dark grey legs; bare red throat wattle; neck and breast streaked pale; lower underparts rufous-chestnut; tail dark. Dusky legs distinguish it from similar Spix's Guan.
About These Birds
Alagoas Curassow
A large cracid (~2.9 kg) of family Cracidae, with glossy black plumage and a distinctive red knobbed bill. Extinct in the Wild; the last wild individuals disappeared from Alagoas, Brazil by the 1980s due to deforestation of the Atlantic Forest. A captive population survives in Brazilian zoos, with reintroduction programs underway. One of the most critically imperiled birds globally.
Dusky-legged Guan
A large cracid (~1.5 kg) of family Cracidae, with dark legs, olive-brown plumage, and a red wattle. Found in Atlantic Forest and subtropical forests of southeastern Brazil, eastern Paraguay, northeastern Argentina, and Uruguay. Arboreal frugivore. Least Concern; one of the most common guans in southeastern South America and increasingly tolerant of forest fragments.