Blackcurassow

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Theblackcurassow(Craxalector),alsoknownas
Blackcurassow
thesmoothbilledcurassowandthecrestedcurassow,isa
speciesofbirdintheCracidaefamily,thechachalacas,guans,
andcurassows.ItisfoundinhumidforestsinnorthernSouth
AmericainColombia,Venezuela,theGuianasandfar
northernBrazil.Introduced
toBahamas,Cuba,Jamaica,Haiti,Dominican
Republic,PuertoRicoandLesserAntilles.[2]Itisthe
onlyCraxcurassowwherethemaleandfemalecannotbe
separatedbyplumage,asbothareessentiallyblackwitha
whitecrissum(theareaaroundthecloaca),andhaveayellow
Conservationstatus
(easternpartofitsrange)ororangered(westernpartofits
range)cere.

Contents[hide] Vulnerable(IUCN3.1)[1]
1 Taxonomy Scientificclassification
2 Description Kingdom: Animalia
3 Behaviour
Phylum: Chordata
4 Status
Class: Aves
5 References
Order: Galliformes
6 Externallinks
Family: Cracidae
Genus: Crax
Taxonomy [ edit ]
Species: C.alector
Therearetworecognizedsubspecies: Binomialname
C.a.alector(Linnaeus,1766) Craxalector
easternColombiaandVenezuelasouthoftheOrinoco Linnaeus,1766

River
C.a.erythrognatha(PLSclaterandSalvin,1877)extremeeasternVenezuelatothe
GuianasandBrazilnorthoftheAmazon

Description [ edit ]

Theblackcurassowisalargebirdreachingabout900millimetres(35in)inlength.Themale
hasblackupperpartsglossedwithapurplishsheenandaninconsricuousblackcrest.Theskin
atthebaseofthegreybeakisyellowororangebuttherearenoknobsandwattles.The
underpartsarewhite.Thefemaleissimilarbutthecrestisbarredwithwhite,andthejuvenileis
black,barredandmottledwithreddishbrownandreddishbuff.[3]

Behaviour [ edit ]

Theblackcurassowisalargelygrounddwellingbird.Itlivesintheundergrowthinlowland
forestsandplantationsandinriversidethickets.Itmostlyeatsfruit,butalsoconsumesbuds,
shoots,leaves,flowers,fungiandinvertebrates.Itnestsafewmetersabovethegroundin
trees,thenestbeingaplatformofsticks.BreedingtakesplaceintherainyseasoninSuriname
whileinFrenchGuiana,youngarereportedinMarchandSeptember.

Status [ edit ]

Althoughtheblackcurassowisfairlycommon,populationshavebeendecliningbecauseof
habitatloss,trappingandhunting.Thesethreatsarelikelytocontinue,andtheInternational
UnionforConservationofNatureratesthebird'sconservationstatusas"vulnerable".[1]

References [ edit ]
1.^abBirdLifeInternational(2012)."Craxalector" .IUCNRedListofThreatenedSpecies.Version
2013.2.InternationalUnionforConservationofNature.Retrieved26November2013.
2.^Long,JohnL.(1981).IntroducedBirdsoftheWorld.AgriculturalProtectionBoardofWestern
Australia,21493
3.^EmmetReidBlake(1July1977).ManualofNeotropicalBirds .UniversityofChicagoPress.
p.431.ISBN9780226056418.

Externallinks [ edit ]

BlackCurassowvideos ontheInternetBirdCollection
Stamps (forSuriname)withRangeMap
BlackCurassowphotogallery VIREOPhotoHighRes(Closeup)
HighResPhotoGalleryandanalysis"BirdsinSuriname" www1.nhl.nl