Great Curassow - BirdForum Opus

Photo © by megan perkins
La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica, March 2010

Crax rubra

Identification

Male 87–92 cm, female 78–84 cm
Male: all black, yellow cere

Distribution

Central and South America:
Central America: found in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
South America: Colombia, Ecuador and Brazil

Taxonomy

Female
Photo © by firecrest15
La Selva Bio Research Station, eastern Costa Rica, May 2009

Subspecies

There are 2 subspecies^[1]:

• C. r. rubra:

• Eastern Mexico to western Ecuador

• C. r. griscomi:

• Cozumel Island (off Yucatán coast of Mexico). Smaller, female legs may be yellowish and some other minor plumage differences. Population around 300 but declining, likely due to poaching^[4]

Habitat

Humid rainforests, lowland coastal jungle.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet consists of fruit and figs.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved July 2014)
4. see: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272886163_The_Cozumel_Curassow_Abundance_habitat_preference_and_conservation

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Great Curassow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 18 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Great_Curassow

External Links

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