Curassow (Crax rubra)

BirdNeotropicalForest

Overview

Curassows are large, impressive birds of Central and South American forests, members of the family Cracidae (alongside guans and chachalacas). The great curassow (Crax rubra), shown here, is among the biggest — a heavy, turkey-sized bird, the male glossy black with a curly forward-curling crest and a bright yellow knob at the base of the bill, while the female is browner and barred. Unlike the more arboreal guans, curassows spend much of their time walking on the forest floor.

Striking and conspicuous, curassows are also among the first large forest birds to vanish from over-hunted areas, making several species a serious conservation concern.

Conservation note: several curassows are threatened — the great curassow is assessed as Vulnerable, and some relatives are Endangered or worse, chiefly from hunting and habitat loss. Verify each species' status at iucnredlist.org.

Habitat & Range

Curassows live in tropical and subtropical forests from Mexico through Central America and across much of South America, depending on the species. The great curassow inhabits humid lowland rainforest, foraging mostly on the ground in mature, relatively undisturbed forest and roosting in trees at night.

Diet

Curassows are mainly frugivores, eating fallen fruit from the forest floor along with seeds, leaves, buds, and some invertebrates and small animals. By consuming fruit and dispersing (or sometimes destroying) seeds, they play a meaningful role in the ecology of their forests.

Behavior

Curassows forage on the ground but roost and nest in trees, and they are strong walkers though somewhat reluctant fliers. Males of many species give very deep, low-pitched booming or humming calls — produced with the help of an elongated windpipe — to advertise territory; in the great curassow the male's curled crest and yellow bill-knob feature in display. They are usually wary, especially where hunted, slipping away quietly through the undergrowth.

Human Interaction & Conservation

Curassows are large, conspicuous, and slow-breeding, which makes them prime targets for hunting — and they quickly disappear from forests where hunting is heavy, serving as an indicator of forest health. Several species are threatened, with a few among the most endangered birds in the Americas. Protecting intact, lightly hunted forest is essential. Consult the IUCN Red List for species-specific status.

More photos of the curassow