Elegant Crested-Tinamou

Identification

The elegant-crested tinamou is a partridge-like shaped bird with rounded wings. The bird is an olive-brown color with the plumage being mainly black and white vermiculations. The bird has a long off-white stripe that starts above the eye and continues down the side of the neck. The beak is short, comes to a sharp upright point. The species legs and feet are short and strong, built for running. Both of those features have a whitish-grey coloring. The elegant-crested tinamou averages 39 to 41 cm (15–16 in) long. They can be found in flocks of about 5-10 birds, and are often detected by whistle calls.

Taxonomy

All tinamou are from the family Tinamidae, and in the larger scheme are also ratites. Unlike other ratites, tinamous can fly, although in general they are not strong fliers. All ratites evolved from prehistoric flying birds, and tinamous are the closest living relative of these birds.<p>Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire first identified the elegant crested tinamou from a specimen from South America, in 1832.<p>Source:

Scientific name

Eudromia elegans

Authority

Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, I, 1832

Order

Tinamiformes

Family

Tinamidae

Genus

Eudromia

Range and habitat

The elegant crested tinamou avoids tall and dense grasses and very thick stands of brush. Ideal environments include dry arid grasslands, open thicket, dry savanna, exposed hills with outlying patches of bushes, and cultivated farmlands. This bird is found in higher elevations(2,500 m (8,200 ft)) and found all the way down to sea level. They live throughout Argentina and Chile. In 1970, there was an attempted introduction of 89 birds near Benkelman, Nebraska, but it was unsuccessful.

Migration

Resident species

Behavior

The crested-tinamou is very terrestrial, it often runs and walks on the ground, unlike other birds. They spend the night at regular roost-sites. To clean, they perform regular dust-bathing in order to remove parasites from their plumage. In case of being hunted the birds are extremely wary. When one is alarmed they stand very tall to look for the source of danger then retreat to cover; they either hide behind vegetation or flatten themselves on the ground and bow their head down to feet level. The call they use is a loud sad whistle.

Conservation

Although this species is heavily hunted for food and sport, the elegant crested tinamou is not uncommon and has a large range of 1,400,000 km2 (540,000 sq mi). It is evaluated as Least Concern of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Their predators include skunks, foxes, wild cats, and raptors, such as the red-backed hawk.

Population trend

declining