Guan (bird)

Guans
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Galliformes
Family:	Cracidae
Subfamily:	Penelopinae; Huxley, 1868
Genera
	Aburria; Chamaepetes; Oreophasis; Penelope; Penelopina; Pipile; Ortalis

The guans are a number of bird genera which make up the largest group in the family Cracidae. They are found mainly in northern South America, southern Central America, and a few adjacent Caribbean islands. There is also the peculiar horned guan (Oreophasis derbianus) which is not a true guan, but a very distinct and ancient cracid with no close living relatives (Pereira et al. 2002).

Systematics and evolution

The

mya (Oligocene, perhaps some time earlier). The two basal lineages diverged during the Burdigalian

, around 20–15 mya.(Pereira et al. 2002)

The two larger genera diverged around the same time, spreading mainly southwards all over tropical South America in the process (Pereira et al. 2002). It appears as if the present-day distribution of the piping-guans is much

Late Pliocene

by a combination of this and, possibly, competition with the more diverse and generally more adaptable Penelope (Grau et al. 2005).

If taken as a subfamily, the group also includes the chachalacas, but the horned guan is excluded and found in its monotypic subfamily.

Genera and species

Image	Genus	Species
	Penelopina L. Reichenbach, 1861	Highland guan, Penelopina nigra
	Oreophasis G.R. Gray, 1844	Horned guan, Oreophasis derbianus
	Chamaepetes Wagler, 1832	Black guan, Chamaepetes unicolor Sickle-winged guan, Chamaepetes goudotii
	Penelope Merrem, 1786	Band-tailed guan, Penelope argyrotis Bearded guan, Penelope barbata Baudo guan, Penelope ortoni Andean guan, Penelope montagnii Marail guan, Penelope marail Rusty-margined guan, Penelope superciliaris Red-faced guan, Penelope dabbenei Crested guan, Penelope purpurascens Cauca guan, Penelope perspicax White-winged guan, Penelope albipennis Spix's guan, Penelope jacquacu Dusky-legged guan, Penelope obscura White-crested guan, Penelope pileata Chestnut-bellied guan, Penelope ochrogaster White-browed guan, Penelope jacucaca
	Aburria L. Reichenbach, 1853	Wattled guan, Aburria aburri
	Pipile - piping guans Bonaparte, 1856	Trinidad piping guan, Pipile pipile Blue-throated piping guan, Pipile cumanensis Red-throated piping guan, Pipile cujubi Black-fronted piping guan, Pipile jacutinga

References

ffrench, Richard; O'Neill, John Patton & Eckelberry, Don R. (1991): A guide to the birds of Trinidad and Tobago (2nd edition). Comstock Publishing, Ithaca, N.Y..
ISBN 0-8014-9792-2

Grau, Erwin T.; Pereira, Sérgio Luiz; Silveira, Luís Fábio; Höfling, Elizabeth & Wanjtal, Anita (2005): Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of Neotropical piping guans (Aves: Galliformes): Pipile Bonaparte, 1856 is synonym of Aburria Reichenbach, 1853. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 35: 637–645.
doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.12.004 PDF fulltext

Pereira, Sérgio Luiz; Baker, Allan J.& Wajntal, Anita (2002): Combined nuclear and
PMID 12554460 PDF fulltext