Dusky-legged guan

The dusky-legged guan (Penelope obscura) is a species of bird in the family Cracidae, the chachalacas, guans, and curassows. It is found in Uruguay, northeastern Argentina and southernmost areas of Paraguay and Brazil. In early 2021, the former subspecies P. o. bridgesi, found in southwestern Bolivia and northwestern Argentina, was elevated to species rank as Yungas guan.[2]

Dusky-legged guan
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Cracidae
Genus: Penelope
Species:
P. obscura
Binomial name
Penelope obscura
Temminck, 1815
Subspecies
  • P. o. obscura (Temminck, 1815)
  • P. o. bronzina (Hellmayr, 1914)

Habitat

Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.[3]

Description

The bird measures an average of 73 centimeters in length and weighs an average of 1.2 kilograms, being very similar in appearance to its smaller relative, the rusty-margined guan (P. supercilliaris).

Diet

It eats fruit, flowers and buds taken from the ground or plucked from tree branches, and acts as a seed disperser for various species of trees and palms, such as the endangered palm Euterpe edulis, or the palms of the genus Syagrus (e.g. queen palm and licuri).[4] Coffee beans digested by the bird are sold for high prices.[5]

References
  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Penelope obscura". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22678389A92771775. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22678389A92771775.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. Gill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P. (January 2021). "IOC World Bird List (v 11.1)". Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  3. del Hoyo, J. and G. M. Kirwan (2020). Dusky-legged Guan (Penelope obscura), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.dulgua1.01 retrieved April 20, 2021
  4. (in Portuguese) José Felipe Monteiro Pereira (2008) Aves e Pássaros Comuns do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro: Technical Books pp.48 ISBN 978-85-61368-00-5
  5. https://english.elpais.com/international/2023-06-17/jacu-coffee-brazilian-bird-droppings-secret-ingredient-in-brew-worth-its-weight-in-gold.html
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