Tawny-breasted tinamou

The tawny-breasted tinamou (Nothocercus julius) is a type of ground bird found in montane moist forest.[1] Their range is northwestern South America.[1][3]

Tawny-breasted tinamou
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Tinamiformes
Family: Tinamidae
Genus: Nothocercus
Species:
N. julius
Binomial name
Nothocercus julius
(Bonaparte, 1854)[2]

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.[4]

Description

The tawny-breasted tinamou has brown upperparts barred with black, and its wings have buff spots. Below its bright chestnut head, it has a white throat. Its breast and flanks are olivaceous brown, while the rest of its underparts are bright rufous. This tinamou measures 35.5–38 cm (14.0–15.0 in) in length.[5]

Behavior

Like other tinamous, the tawny-breasted eats fruit off the ground or low-lying bushes. They also eat small amounts of invertebrates, flower buds, tender leaves, seeds, and roots. The male incubates the eggs which may come from as many as 4 different females, and then will raise them until they are ready to be on their own, usually 2–3 weeks. The nest is located on the ground in dense brush or between raised root buttresses.[4]

Range

This species is native to the Andes in far western Venezuela, central Colombia, Ecuador, and southern Peru.[3]

Habitat

The tawny-breasted tinamou is a type of ground bird found in montane moist forest[1] up to 1,700 to 3,350 m (5,580–10,990 ft) altitude.

Conservation

The tawny-breasted tinamou is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN,[1] and has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 110,000 km2 (42,000 sq mi).[6]

Footnotes
  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Nothocercus julius". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Brands, S. (2008)
  3. Clemenst, J. (2007)
  4. Davies, S. J. J. F. (2003)
  5. Schulenberg, Thomas S.; Stotz, Douglas F.; Lane, Daniel F.; O'Neill, John P.; Parker III, Theodore A. (2007). Birds of Peru. Princeton, NJ, US: Princeton University Press. p. 30.
  6. BirdLife International (2008)

References
  • BirdLife International (2008). "Tawny-breasted Tinamou - BirdLife Species Factsheet". Data Zone. Retrieved 6 Feb 2009.
  • Brands, Sheila (Aug 14, 2008). "Systema Naturae 2000 / Classification, Genus Nothocercus". Project: The Taxonomicon. Retrieved Feb 4, 2009.
  • Clements, James (2007). The Clements Checklist of the Birds of the World (6th ed.). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-4501-9.
  • Davies, S.J.J.F. (2003). "Tinamous". In Hutchins, Michael (ed.). Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. 8 Birds I Tinamous and Ratites to Hoatzins (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group. pp. 57–59. ISBN 0-7876-5784-0.
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