A chachalaca with a brown body and rufous head and upper neck. Family groups use the forest mid-canopy but also come to the ground.
The body is uniformly brown, with a rufous head and upper neck. About half of the outer tail feathers are also rufous, and the legs are gray; the sexes look alike.
Rufous-headed Chachalacas inhabit northwestern South American forests. Records from Peru’s Tumbes include pre-dawn duets.
On27 July1988, two pairs called around05:15 near Cotrina. Researchers described the duets as slower and lower-pitched than those of other chachalacas they knew; another pair was seen in drier forest that day.
In late February1986, up to four flocks were heard daily along a trail. Hunted birds were also documented locally. Records from different forest types inform habitat conservation.
IUCN Red List (BirdLife listing) · Vulnerable · Global
BirdLife lists Vulnerable. Regional forest loss and documented hunting are conservation concerns. Retaining remnant forests and monitoring occurrence and hunting impacts support conservation.