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tinamou

[tin-uh-moo]

tinamou, common name for a South American game bird related to the ostrich. It is protectively colored in browns and grays. The females are the aggressors in courtship, and the males incubate the colorful eggs and rear the young. Their flesh is delicious; attempts have been made to introduce them in North America. Although similar in appearance to partridges, tinamous are not related to them. Tinamous are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Aves, order Tinamiformes, family Tinamidae.

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Licensed from Columbia University Press

Tinamou

The tinamous are one of the most ancient groups of bird, members of a South American bird family of about 47 species in 9 genera. Although they look similar to other ground-dwelling birds like quail and grouse, they have no close relatives and are classified as a single family Tinamidae within their own order, the Tinamiformes.

Of Gondwanan origin, they are related to the ratites (order Struthioniformes), including the rheas, emu, and kiwi. Although the fossil record in South America is generally poor, the known tinamou fossil record goes back 10 million years.

Together with the ratites, they make up the Paleognathae, or “Old Jaws”, as distinct from the vast majority of modern birds in the Neognathae, or “New Jaws”.

Description and ecology

There are 47 species of tinamou in South America and north to Mexico, occurring in a wide range of habitats. They eat a variety of food including insects and berries. The smallest species, the Dwarf Nothura, is about 42 g (1.4 oz) and 15 cm (6 in) long. The largest tinamou, the Gray Tinamou, weighs 1.6 kg (3.6 lb) and measures up to 50 cm (20 in) long.

Tinamous are rarely seen, but often heard within their range. Most inhabit the tropical lowlands of South America, typically in dark, dense forest, but some species range as far north as Mexico and occur in a wide range of habitats. Many species are herbivorous, but some include an amount of insects in their diets. Although some species are quite common, they are shy and secretive. A small number of species live in more open, grassy country, but even these are wary. Although most species are able to fly, they do so relatively poorly, and prefer to escape from danger by hiding in cover or freezing still.

Tinamous lay several eggs in a ground nest lined with grass and leaves. The eggs are attractively coloured and have a hard gloss like porcelain. The young are precocial, and can run almost as soon as they hatch.

Species in taxonomic order

FAMILY: TINAMIDAE

Genus: Tinamus

White-throated Tinamou, Tinamus guttatus
Grey Tinamou, Tinamus tao
Solitary Tinamou, Tinamus solitarius

T. s. pernambucensis
T. s. solitarius

Black Tinamou, Tinamus osgoodi

T. o. hershkovitzi
T. o. osgoodi

Great Tinamou, Tinamus major

T. m. percautus
T. m. robustus
T. m. fuscipennis
T. m. castaneiceps
T. m. brunniventris
T. m. saturatus
T. m. latifrons
T. m. zuliensis
T. m. major
T. m. olivascens
T. m. peruvianus
T. m. serratus

Genus: Nothocercus

Highland Tinamou, Nothocercus bonapartei

N. b. frantzii
N. b. bonapartei
N. b. discrepans
N. b. intercedens
N. b. plumbeiceps

Tawny-breasted Tinamou, Nothocercus julius
Hooded Tinamou, Nothocercus nigrocapillus

N. n. cadwaladeri
N. n. nigrocapillus

Genus: Crypturellus

Berlepsch's Tinamou, Crypturellus berlepschi
Little Tinamou, Crypturellus soui

C. s. meserythrus
C. s. modestus
C. s. capnodes
C. s. poliocephalus
C. s. caucae
C. s. harterti
C. s. mustelinus
C. s. caqueta
C. s. nigriceps
C. s. soui
C. s. albigularis
C. s. inconspicuus
C. s. andrei
C. s. panamensis

Cinereous Tinamou, Crypturellus cinereus
Tepui Tinamou, Crypturellus ptaritepui
Brown Tinamou, Crypturellus obsoletus

C. o. obsoletus
C. o. griseiventris
C. o. hypochraceus
C. o. punensis
C. o. traylori
C. o. ochraceiventris
C. o. castaneus
C. o. knoxi
C. o. cerviniventris

Undulated Tinamou, Crypturellus undulatus

C. u. undulatus
C. u. manapiare
C. u. simplex
C. u. adspersus
C. u. yapura
C. u. vermiculatus

Pale-browed Tinamou, Crypturellus transfasciatus
Brazilian Tinamou, Crypturellus strigulosus
Grey-legged Tinamou, Crypturellus duidae
Red-legged Tinamou, Crypturellus erythropus

C. e. erythropus
C. e. cursitans
C. e. spencei
C. e. margaritae
Magdalena Tinamou, C. (erythropus) saltuarius (taxonomic status presently unclear)
Santa Marta Tinamou, C. (erythropus) idoneus (taxonomic status presently unclear)
Colombian Tinamou, C. (erythropus) columbianus (taxonomic status presently unclear)