Horned curassow

Horned curassow
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Cracidae
Genus: Pauxi
Species:
P. unicornis
Binomial name
Pauxi unicornis
Bond, J & Meyer de Schauensee, 1939
Subspecies
  • P. u. unicornis
  • P. u. koepckeae (now P. koepckeae)
Synonyms
  • Crax unicornis (Bond & Meyer de Schauensee) Vuilleumier 1965

The horned curassow (Pauxi unicornis), or southern helmeted curassow, is a species of bird in the family Cracidae found in humid tropical and subtropical forests. It was first described by James Bond and Rodolphe Meyer de Schauensee in 1939 from a specimen collected in Bolivia, and further birds that were described from Peru in 1971 were thought to be a new subspecies. However, the taxonomical position (as subspecies or independent species) of the birds found in Peru in 1971 is unclear. The horned curassow as originally described is endemic to Bolivia. It is a large, predominantly black bird with a distinctive casque on its forehead. It is an uncommon bird with a limited range and is suffering from habitat loss, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "critically endangered".

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