Seriema
family of birds
The seriemas are the sole living members of the small bird family Cariamidae (the entire family is also referred to as "seriemas"), which is also the only surviving lineage of the order Cariamiformes. Once believed to be related to cranes, they have been placed near the falcons, parrots, and passerines, as well as the extinct Phorusrhacidae (terror birds). The seriemas are large, long-legged territorial birds that range from 70–90 cm (28–35 in) in length. They live in grasslands, savanna, dry woodland and open forests of Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. There are two species of seriemas, the red-legged seriema (Cariama cristata) and the black-legged seriema (Chunga burmeisteri). Names for these birds in the Tupian languages are variously spelled as siriema, sariama, and çariama, and mean "crested".
Description
Both species are around 90 cm (35 in) long (the red-legged seriema is slightly bigger than the black-legged, with 90 and 70–85 cm respectively). The seriemas forage on foot and run from danger rather than fly (though they can fly for short distances, and they roost in trees). They have long legs, necks, and tails, but only short wings, reflecting their way of life. Also, they are among the largest ground-dwelling birds endemic to the Neotropics (only behind rheas).
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This entry incorporates text from “Seriema” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.