Penelope perspicax
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Cauca guan (Penelope perspicax) is a bird in the chachalaca, guan and curassow family, Cracidae. It is a large guan, and like most guans leads a mostly arboreal life in humid forests, where it forages for fruit and leaves. The Cauca guan is endemic to Colombia's Cauca River valley.
In Spanish the bird is called pava caucana. The bird was first formally described in 1911 by the American ornithologist Outram Bangs, based on the type specimen collected on 5 June 1908 by Mervin G. Palmer at San Luis in the Bitaco Valley of western Colombia. All four of the major taxonomic authorities recognize Cauca guan as a species.
The genus name Penelope derives from the Ancient Greek penelops - a type of duck which was said to have rescued Penelope after she was thrown into the sea. The species epithet perspicax is Latin for sharp-sighted. The species is monotypic - no subspecies are recognized.
These are large birds, measuring c.75–85 cm in length, with the typical plump body, long tail and small head of the Cracidae species. The head, neck and mantle of the Cauca guan are dark grey, blending into the reddish chestnut colour of the rump, scapulars... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Nevados National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Farallones de Cali National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zoológico Miguél Álvarez del Toro | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Cauca Guan sighting in Los Nevados National Natural Park on a given day, based on 840 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 83rd most-seen of the 424 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Cauca Guan in Los Nevados National Natural Park on a given day, against about 10% in January to November, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cauca Guan sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Cauca Guan sightings, Los Nevados National Natural Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Farallones de Cali National Natural Park (Colombia, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cauca Guan is recorded against all the birds logged in Los Nevados National Natural Park (840 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
