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The highland guan (''Penelopina nigra'') is a species of
The highland guan grows to a length of . The plumage of the male is black, the upper parts glossed with green or blue, the underparts rather duller. The iris of the eye is reddish-brown and there is reddish-brown or purplish bare skin around and behind the eye. The beak, the bare skin on the throat, the large wattle, the legs and feet are reddish-orange. The female, by contrast, is black, heavily mottled and barred with reddish-brown and cinnamon, with a red beak and bare skin round the beak, and purplish bare skin round the eye.
Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1850 (1852), p.246, pl.XXIX.
are held in the collections of
2006-2007 Red List status changes
]. Retrieved 26 August 2007. * BirdLife International (2007b)
Highland Guan - BirdLife Species Factsheet
Retrieved 26 August 2007. {{Taxonbar, from=Q646941 Cracidae, highland guan highland guan Birds of Mexico Birds of Guatemala Birds of Honduras Birds of Nicaragua highland guan highland guan Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
in the family Cracidae
The chachalacas, guans and curassows are birds in the family Cracidae. These are species of tropical and subtropical Central and South America. The range of one species, the plain chachalaca, just reaches southernmost parts of Texas in the Unite ...
. It is found in the highlands of El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south ...
, Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Hon ...
, Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
, southern Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
, and Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the coun ...
.
Its natural habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. Its population has declined much in recent times: Listed as a species of Least Concern in 1994, it was uplisted to Near Threatened in 2000 and, as it was determined to be less common than previously believed, to Vulnerable in the 2007 IUCN Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biolo ...
.See BirdLife International (2004, 2007a,b).
Description
The highland guan grows to a length of . The plumage of the male is black, the upper parts glossed with green or blue, the underparts rather duller. The iris of the eye is reddish-brown and there is reddish-brown or purplish bare skin around and behind the eye. The beak, the bare skin on the throat, the large wattle, the legs and feet are reddish-orange. The female, by contrast, is black, heavily mottled and barred with reddish-brown and cinnamon, with a red beak and bare skin round the beak, and purplish bare skin round the eye.
Taxonomy
The threesyntype specimens
In biological nomenclature, a syntype is any one of two or more biological types that is listed in a description of a taxon where no holotype was designated. Precise definitions of this and related terms for types have been established as part o ...
of ''Penelope niger'' FraserProc. Zool. Soc. London, 1850 (1852), p.246, pl.XXIX.
are held in the collections of
National Museums Liverpool
National Museums Liverpool, formerly National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside, comprises several museums and art galleries in and around Liverpool, England. All the museums and galleries in the group have free admission. The museum is a non ...
at World Museum
World Museum is a large museum in Liverpool, England which has extensive collections covering archaeology, ethnology and the natural and physical sciences. Special attractions include the Natural History Centre and a planetarium. Entry to the ...
, with accession numbers D484 (male adult) and D484a (female adult) and D484b (male adult). The specimens came to the Liverpool national collection via the 13th Earl of Derby
Edward Smith-Stanley, 13th Earl of Derby (21 April 1775 – 30 June 1851), KG, of Knowsley Hall in Lancashire (styled Lord Stanley from 1776 to 1832, known as Baron Stanley of Bickerstaffe from 1832-4), was a politician, peer, landowner, bui ...
’s collection which was bequeathed to the people of Liverpool in 1851. D484 and D484a were purchased from Mess. Leadbeater in September 1843 while D484b died at the menagerie at Knowsley Hall
Knowsley Hall is a stately home near Liverpool in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England. It is the ancestral home of the Stanley family, the Earls of Derby. The hall is surrounded by of parkland, which contains the Knowsley ...
on 5 August 1850.
Distribution and habitat
The highland guan is found on either side of the mountain ranges inCentral America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
. In Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
it is uncommon, but it is present in moderate numbers in the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve
El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve in southern Mexico. It is in the Sierra Madre de Chiapas in southern Chiapas.
Geography
El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve has an area of 1191.77 km2 in the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, a mountain range th ...
. It is also common in some localities in Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Hon ...
, but rather rarer in Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
, north-central Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the coun ...
and El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south ...
, and it may be extinct in El Salvador. Its habitat is humid broad-leaved mountain forests, mainly cloud forest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud ...
s and pine-oak forests, but it has also been observed in secondary forests and plantations. The bird forages for fruit, in the trees and on the leaf litter
Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...
.
Status
The highland guan is thought to be decreasing in numbers. The main threats it faces are the destruction of its forest habitat, and being hunted for food. TheInternational Union for Conservation of Nature
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
has assessed its conservation status as " vulnerable".
References
* BirdLife International (2007a):2006-2007 Red List status changes
]. Retrieved 26 August 2007. * BirdLife International (2007b)
Highland Guan - BirdLife Species Factsheet
Retrieved 26 August 2007. {{Taxonbar, from=Q646941 Cracidae, highland guan highland guan Birds of Mexico Birds of Guatemala Birds of Honduras Birds of Nicaragua highland guan highland guan Taxonomy articles created by Polbot