Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...
A photo of a Great Tinamou (Tinamus major)
Great Tinamou

Great Tinamou

Tinamus major

The Great Tinamou, Tinamus major, is a ground-dwelling bird native to the lush forests of Central and South America. This species, despite its name, is not necessarily the largest tinamou, but it is comparable in size to a large pheasant or a small turkey. It measures approximately 38 to 46 cm in length and weighs between 700 to 1,142 grams in males and 945 to 1,249 grams in females. Its plumage ranges from light to dark olive-green, with a whitish throat and belly, flanks barred black, and an undertail of cinnamon hue. The crown and neck are rufous, while the occipital crest and supercilium are blackish. Its legs are a blue-grey color, and these features collectively provide excellent camouflage in the rainforest understory.

Identification Tips

When identifying the Great Tinamou, look for its olive-green coloration, whitish underparts, and the distinctive barring on the flanks. The rufous neck and blackish crest are also key features. Its blue-grey legs can be a helpful identifier if visible. The bird's size and shape may remind one of a pheasant or turkey, aiding in its identification.

Habitat

The Great Tinamou thrives in a variety of forest habitats, including subtropical and tropical rainforests, lowland evergreen forests, river-edge forests, swamp forests, and cloud forests. It is found at altitudes ranging from 300 to 1,500 meters.

Distribution

This species has a broad range across Central and South America, from southeast Mexico through Guatemala and Honduras, extending down to Bolivia and west Brazil.

Behaviour

The Great Tinamou is a solitary bird, except during mating when pairs stay together until the eggs are laid. It roams the dark understory alone, foraging for seeds, fruits, and small animals such as insects, spiders, frogs, and small lizards in the leaf litter. It is particularly fond of fruits from the Lauraceae, Annonaceae, Myrtaceae, and Sapotaceae families.

Song & Calls

The call of the Great Tinamou is a distinctive series of three short, tremulous but powerful piping notes, often heard in the early evenings within its rainforest habitat.

Breeding

This species exhibits polygynandrous behavior with exclusive male parental care. Females lay an average of four bright blue or violet eggs per clutch, which the male incubates and cares for the chicks for about three weeks. Females may start nests with multiple males throughout the breeding season.

Diet and Feeding

The Great Tinamou feeds on seeds, fruits, and small animals found in the leaf litter. It has a particular preference for fruits from certain plant families, including Lauraceae, Annonaceae, Myrtaceae, and Sapotaceae.

Conservation status

The Great Tinamou is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is widespread throughout its large range and is hunted without significant impact on its population.

App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.

Great Tinamous on Birda

Photos
Sightings

More Tinamous

Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
Emma L
App got me interested in birding!
Super friendly community <3 This app got me interested in birding! It teaches me cool stuff and its super friendly, and fun :) The species guide is really developing my knowledge, and i love seeing cool new birds from round the world!
Carl B
Helped me to identify more birds
Love this app and has helped me to identify more birds. The challenges and badges are great for keeping the motivation going to get out and keep birding.
Jake W
Great app
I use this app all the time as it’s quick and easy to log individual sightings or whole birding sessions. It’s an excellent way to meet new people and the forum is full of really friendly people. The challenges are a great way to get involved and learn more about birds. Cannot recommend it enough!
Nick S
Work together with community
Been loving using this app to log my bird sightings and work together with community members to identify different birds. I've already learned a lot since I started about a month ago!
Leonie
We've been waiting for an App like this
Excellent! We've been waiting for an app like this! Thank you! It would be nice if you could assign additional birds to sessions later!
Carrie
Makes you want to spot birds more
I think this app is fun. It makes you want to spot birds more so I guess in a way it encourages you to get out and about instead of sitting in front of the TV.
Jane N
A great app
Enjoying it immensely and finding it useful too. Recording the different birds and counting them is showing me how the present climate is affecting them all. I've trebled the numbers by planting native hedging. A great app.
Talli A
My favourite app
As a young birdwatcher who was always keen to be apart of a community but never seemed to find one, my problem was solved downloading this!!! Everyone is so friendly and just as excited to see birds as me 😁
EandB17
Terrific App for Birders
Downloaded Birda around the time my interest in birding was sparked, and it has been a terrific app to help me (1) share my experience, (2) document my sightings, and (3) learn more about birds in general. That said, I also believe Birda is a fantastic app for birders of all experience levels. Great community!
Nicole
Gets me outdoors more
I'm still loving this app. I use it most days & gets me outdoors more. Enjoying watching others progress and photo's, it's improved my wellbeing.... I love this app! I can keep a record of sightings and see what others have seen too.
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.