Red-legged Seriema
Cariama cristata
Unmistakable large terrestrial raptorial bird. Sandy-colored overall with very long red legs, a long tail, and tufty crest in front of the eyes. Note the strong red bill and large pale eyes with blue eyerings. Strides elegantly through open and lightly wooded savannas but also perches on the top of trees. Usually sings at dawn, an evocative and incredibly loud “kuap-kuap-kuap-kuap” often delivered as a duet for extended periods.
Identification
The red-legged seriema is around 75 to 90 centimetres (30 to 35 in) long and weighs about 1.5 to 2.2 kilograms (3.3 to 4.9 lb), with long legs, necks, and tails. The males are slightly larger than females. It has a greyish-brown plumage, finely barred and vermiculated with dark brown and black; pale brown on the head, neck, and breast; white on belly. The long, broad outer tail has a subterminal black band and a white tip. It has a reddish beak and very long, salmon-coloured legs. The eyes are yellow. Soft feathers emerge from the base of the bill to form a distinctive fan-shaped crest.<p>Many other characteristics are shared with the black-legged seriema (Chunga burmeisteri), the only other living member of its family. Some of these traits are discussed in the Cariamidae article.
Taxonomy
The red-legged seriema was described in 1766 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He coined the binomial name Palamedea cristata. The red-legged seriema is now the only species placed in the genus Cariama that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The specific epithet cristata is Latin for "crested", "plumed" or "tufted". The German naturalist Georg Marcgrave used the Latin word Cariama for the red-legged seriema in his Historia naturalis Brasiliae, which was published in 1648.<p>The name is derived from the Portuguese word seriema, which comes from a Tupi word corresponding to çariama, derived from the words çaria (crest) and am (raised).
- Scientific name
- Cariama cristata
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Cariamiformes
- Family
- Cariamidae
- Genus
- Cariama
Range and habitat
The red-legged seriema inhabits most of central and eastern Brazil, Paraguay, eastern and southeastern Bolivia, Uruguay, and northeastern Argentina. It is found at elevations up to 6,600 feet (2,000 m).<p>The red-legged seriema prefers grassland habitat to any other. Though it likes to inhabit lush meadows near rivers, it will not readily move into wetlands or crop fields. It frequents semi-open and fairly dry areas such as thorny scrub and semi-arid woodland regions, savannas and ranchlands, and also hilly grasslands near wooded areas. This species is very typical in Caatinga, Cerrado and Chaco.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Seriemas are wary, territorial, and diurnal birds. Generally, the red-legged seriema is sedentary, although there are reports of temperature-related migrations. It is typically seen singly or in pairs, but occasionally in groups of up to four individuals, apparently families. It usually walks on the ground and can easily run faster than a human in its habitat. It will flee a car on foot at speeds up to 25 km/h (15 mph) before flying.<p>Territorial defense may involve agonistic confrontation between individuals, initially characterized by full vocalization duets followed by short runs and flights towards intruders, alternated with claws and beak attacks. In one conflict between two birds, they jumped at each other feet-first, keeping their balance by flapping.<p>This species typically nests on low trees or bushes, so that adults are able to reach the nest from the ground by short hops or flutters rather than by flying.<p>Red-legged seriemas demonstrate an unusual way of hunting vertebrate prey; they pick the prey up with their beak and repeatedly throw it at the ground until it is stunned or dead.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Pere David's Laughingthrush
Pterorhinus davidi
A plain clay-brown laughingthrush with a long, curved yellow bill. Largely without distinguishing plumage features, but note weak white brow, blue-gray tinge to the wings, and small black patches on the “elbow” and face. The only laughingthrush in much of its range. Forages in hilly and montane regions, where it often moves about noisily in medium-sized flocks in scrubby, brushy habitat, often near waterways. Long rambling song melodious and thrush-like; calls include fluid whistles, nasal chattering, and quiet peeping.
Masked Gnatcatcher
Polioptila dumicola
Bold patterned gnatcatcher usually found in the canopy of savanna, open woodlands, and forest edges where it may join mixed-species flocks. Largely grayish overall with a white-edged black tail. Males have a black mask while females have a small black ear patch on a generally pale face. Males of the subspecies from Northwest Brazil are whiter below and grayish in other populations.
Arrowhead Warbler
Setophaga pharetra
A small active species found high in moist woodlands. Frequently flicks its tail and often gives impression of being entirely heavily streaked. Blackpoll Warbler can be somewhat similar, but fall birds are tinged with some degree of yellow below, and spring males have a bold white cheek. Black-and-white Warbler is also similar, but it has bold black-and-white stripes (as opposed to distinct streaks as on Arrowhead Warbler) on crown and is usually found creeping along tree trunks or limbs. Call is a hard chip with a slightly squeaky quality. Song is relatively quiet and variable consisting of “tsi” notes; often with two or three introductory notes followed by one or two notes at a lower pitch then several notes at original pitch, given in rapid succession.
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