About Ortalis canicollis (Wagler, 1830)
The Chaco chachalaca, scientifically named Ortalis canicollis (Wagler, 1830), is 50 to 56 cm (1.6 to 1.8 ft) long and weighs 479 to 678 g (1.1 to 1.5 lb). For the nominate subspecies, the head, back, and breast are gray, the belly ranges from tan to brown, and it has bare pinkish red skin surrounding the eye. The subspecies O. c. pantanalensis is overall browner than the nominate, and its facial skin is more purplish than pinkish. In terms of distribution and habitat, the nominate subspecies occurs in the Gran Chaco region of eastern Bolivia, western Paraguay, and northern Argentina. O. c. pantanalensis occurs in southwestern Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. There are also unconfirmed reports of O. c. pantanalensis in neighboring Bolivia and Paraguay. The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society considers the Chaco chachalaca a hypothetical species in Uruguay. The Chaco chachalaca lives in a range of landscapes: lowland swamp forest and scrub, dry subtropical forest, semi-deciduous forest, gallery forest, and palm groves. It can occupy both mature forest and secondary forest. In Brazil and Paraguay, it only occurs at low elevations, but in Argentina it can be found at elevations up to approximately 1,000 m (3,300 ft).
