Southern Screamer

About the Southern Screamer

The southern screamer (Chauna torquata) 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 southern screamer shares genus Chauna with the northern screamer (C. chavaria). One other species, the horned screamer (Anhima cornuta) is also in family Anhimidae. The southern screamer is monotypic.

The southern screamer is one of the largest birds of southern South America at 83 to 90 cm (33 to 35 in) long and weighing about 4.4 kg (9.7 lb). Their flat wing measures 50 to 57 cm (20 to 22 in), their tail 22 to 26 cm (8.7 to 10.2 in), and their culmen 4.0 to 5.4 cm (1.6 to 2.1 in). Weight is known from one female, which was 4.4 kg (9.7 lb). They are stout bodied with a disproportionately small head and a "chicken-like" grayish brown bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Their head and upperparts are gray with a velvety black "collar" around the base of the neck. Their wings and tail are dusky and the wing has two sharp spurs at its manus. The front of their neck, their breast, and their sides are pale gray faintly mottled and streaked with white... Wikipedia →