Great Curassow
Crax rubra
Visual Identification
Appearance
The Great Curassow is a large, ground-dwelling bird with striking sexual dimorphism. Males are predominantly black with a distinctive yellow knob on their bill and a curly crest of feathers on their head. They have a white belly and undertail coverts.
Females exhibit two colour morphs: barred and rufous. Barred females have black and white striped bodies, while rufous females are reddish-brown. Both female types have black-and-white crests and lack the yellow bill knob.
Juvenile males initially resemble the darker-coloured female but soon change to the black of the adult male. They do not, however, feature the yellow knob on the bill of the adult. Juvenile females have similar morphs to adult females.
Size
Length
84cm to 92cm
Wingspan
100cm to 120cm
Weight
3kg to 4.8kg
Habitat and Distribution
Habitats
Woodland
Garden
Wetland
Coastal
Urban
Farmland
Grassland
Desert
Tundra
Rainforest
Mountain
Savanna
Distribution
Great Curassows inhabit tropical and subtropical rainforests from eastern Mexico through Central America to western Colombia and Ecuador. They prefer undisturbed, mature forests with a dense canopy and open understory.
While primarily found in lowland forests, they can occur at elevations up to 1,900 meters.
Elevation Range
Sea level to 1,900 meters
Climate zones
Tropical
Distribution Map
This map gives you a rough idea of where you might spot a Great Curassow. The coloured areas show countries where these birds have been seen.
A few things to keep in mind:
- Birds might not be everywhere in the coloured areas, for example, they may be present around the coast of that country
- Where birds live can change with seasons and available food
- This map is quite simple - it doesn't show exact locations
We're working on making our maps even better! Soon, we hope to show you:
- More detailed maps for bigger countries, including state and region
- How birds move around during different seasons