| Northern screamer | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anhimidae |
| Genus: | Chauna |
| Species: | C. chavaria |
| Binomial name | |
| Chauna chavaria (Linnaeus, 1766) | |
 | |
| Distribution map | |
| Synonyms | |
Parra chavariaLinnaeus, 1766 | |
The northern screamer (Chauna chavaria) is a Near Threatened species of bird in family Anhimidae of the waterfowl order Anseriformes. It is found in Colombia and Venezuela. [2]
The northern screamer shares genus Chauna with the southern screamer (C. torquata). One other species, the horned screamer (Anhima cornuta) is also in family Anhimidae. The northern screamer is monotypic. [2]
The northern screamer is 76 to 91 cm (30 to 36 in) long. They are stout bodied with a disproportionately small head and a gray bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults have a gray crown with a long crest, a mostly white face, a wide black band around the neck, and a dark gray body, wings, and tail. Their wing has two sharp spurs at its manus. They have bare red skin around their brown eye and reddish orange legs and feet. Juveniles are similar to adults but drabber. [3]
The northern screamer is found across northern Colombia from the Atrato River and Magdalena River valleys east into the Lake Maracaibo area of Venezuela. It inhabits a variety of wet landscapes including swamps, marshes, lagoons, riverbanks, and seasonally flooded river plains. [3]
The northern screamer is essentially sedentary but local wandering by non-breeders and juveniles is suspected. [3]
The northern screamer feeds on the leaves, stems, and roots of aquatic plants. They usually graze like geese, sometimes in loose flocks. [3]
The northern screamer is territorial during the breeding season. The pair build a mound of plant material and debris as a nest. Breeding can be at any time of year but most eggs are laid in October and November. The typical clutch size is three to five eggs but can be up to seven. Both parents incubate the eggs and care for the young. The incubation period is 42 to 44 days; fledging occurs eight to ten weeks after hatch and the young are independent after about 12 weeks. [3]
The northern screamer, like others of its family, is very vocal. Its primary vocalization is a "single, rather high-pitched yelping call...'kleer-a-ruk, cherio'." [3]
The IUCN originally assessed the northern screamer as Threatened. Since 2004 has treated it as Near Threatened but it nearly again meets the criteria for Threatened status. It has a somewhat limited range and its estimated population of between 1500 and 7000 mature individuals is believed to be decreasing. [1] It occurs in several protected areas in Colombia but even they have suffered from habitat destruction. The species is also affected by egg collecting and hunting for food, domestic and industrial pollution of its habitat, and urbanization. [3]
The screamers are three South American bird species placed in family Anhimidae. They were thought to be related to the Galliformes because of similar bills, but are more closely related to Anseres, i.e., ducks, and the magpie goose. The clade is exceptional within the living birds in lacking uncinate processes of ribs. The three species are: The horned screamer ; the southern screamer or crested screamer ; and the northern screamer or black-necked screamer.
The magpie goose is the sole living representative species of the family Anseranatidae. This common waterbird is found in northern Australia and southern New Guinea. As the species is prone to wandering, especially when not breeding, it is sometimes recorded outside its core range. The species was once also widespread in southern Australia but disappeared from there largely due to the drainage of the wetlands where the birds once bred. Due to their importance to Aboriginal people as a seasonal food source, as subjects of recreational hunting, and as a tourist attraction, their expansive and stable presence in northern Australia has been "ensured [by] protective management".
The ashy-headed goose is a species of waterfowl in tribe Tadornini of subfamily Anserinae. It is found in Argentina and Chile.
The horned screamer is a member of a small family of birds, the Anhimidae, which occurs in wetlands of tropical South America. There are three screamer species, the other two being the southern screamer and the northern screamer in the genus Chauna. They are related to the ducks, geese and swans, which are in the family Anatidae, but have bills looking more like those of game birds.
The Orinoco goose is a Near Threatened species of waterfowl in the tribe Tadornini of subfamily Anserinae. It is found in every mainland South American country except Chile, French Guiana, Suriname, and Uruguay.
The kelp goose is a species of waterfowl in tribe Tadornini of subfamily Anserinae. It is found in Argentina, Chile, and the Falkland Islands.
The southern screamer is a species of bird in family Anhimidae of the waterfowl order Anseriformes. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay.
The grey-rumped swift or gray-rumped swift is a species of bird in subfamily Apodinae of the swift family Apodidae. It is found in Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama; in every mainland South American country except Chile, French Guiana, Suriname, and Uruguay; in Trinidad and Tobago; and on Grenada.
The cocoa woodcreeper is a species of bird in the subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela.
The indigo-capped hummingbird is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is endemic to Colombia.
The fiery-tailed awlbill is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae, the mangoes. It is found in Brazil, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela.
The Perijá metaltail is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "coquettes", tribe Lesbiini of subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Colombia and Venezuela.
The black-fronted wood quail is a bird species in the family Odontophoridae, the New World quail. It is found in Colombia and Venezuela.
The grey-capped cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, as a vagrant on Bonaire and in the Galápagos Islands, and possibly in Panama.
The orange-cheeked parrot, also known as Barraband's parrot, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It was formerly placed in the genus Pionopsitta, which is now monotypic.
The bicolored wren is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is found in Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, and Brazil.
The southern nightingale-wren, also known as the scaly-breasted wren, is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.
The buff-breasted wren is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is found in the Amazon Basin of northern Brazil and Amazonian Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and northern-border Bolivia, and also the Guianan countries of Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. It occurs in non-Amazonian regions of Venezuela and Colombia and its range extends into eastern Panama.
The crowned woodnymph or violet-crowned woodnymph, is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found from Belize and Guatemala to far-northern Peru.
The black-fronted brushfinch or black-fronted brush finch is a species of bird in the family Passerellidae, the New World sparrows. It is found in the Perijá Mountains of northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela.
