White-bellied chachalaca

Scientific name: Ortalis leucogastra

How weight is recorded: Whole weight

Field notes

Appearance

A small, slender game bird with olive-brown upperparts and a distinctive white belly. The head is grey-brown with a bare facial patch behind the eye; the tail is long and graduated. Sexes are similar in plumage.

Size and weight

Adults typically weigh 140–180 g with a body length of 24–27 cm; males average slightly larger than females.

Habitat

White-bellied chachalacas inhabit scrubby woodland, dense brushland, and forest edges from sea level to approximately 1,800 m elevation. They favour areas with thick, low vegetation and tangled undergrowth that provides cover.

Distribution

Endemic to Mexico, ranging from southern Sonora and Tamaulipas south through the Yucatán Peninsula and into Central America. Found exclusively in lowland and foothill scrub zones.

Diet

Primarily herbivorous, feeding on fruits, seeds, and leaves year-round, with seasonal preference for ripe fruits when available; also takes insects opportunistically.

Behaviour

Diurnal and highly vocal, most active at dawn and dusk; travels and forages in small flocks of 3–12 birds, moving restlessly through dense cover with quick, low flights and frequent ground shuffling. They roost communally at night.

Hunting tips

Scout roosting areas at dawn; listen for their characteristic cackling calls to locate flocks. Move slowly through brush, using cover to approach feeding birds; they flush quickly with noisy alarm calls. Optimal approach is from upwind through dense scrub; be prepared for rapid, low flight through vegetation when birds are flushed.

Whole weight

This species is logged by whole weight — the animal weighed entire, as taken.

Where it is hunted

Listed as huntable in 1 country in Huntify.

Honduras

Names in other languages

These field notes are general species knowledge, not legal advice. Always check the current seasons, quotas and firearm rules where you hunt.