The grey-legged tinamou, alternatively, the gray-legged tinamou, is a small ground-dwelling bird endemic to the neotropics. It is a rarely seen bird due to its small size and discreet appearance.
Region
Guiana Shield and northwestern Amazon Basin
Typical Environment
Occurs in humid lowland and foothill forests of southern Venezuela, adjacent northwestern Brazil (upper Rio Negro region), and bordering southeastern Colombia. It favors terra firme rainforest and patches of nutrient-poor white-sand (campinarana) forest with dense understory. The species keeps to well-drained interior forest, ridges, and older secondary growth, and it generally avoids extensive seasonally flooded varzea and igapó. Individuals move along animal trails and thick leaf litter, relying on camouflage to remain undetected.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1200 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The grey-legged tinamou is a shy, ground-dwelling bird of the northwestern Amazon and Guiana Shield. Like other tinamous, males incubate a clutch that may contain eggs from multiple females and then lead the chicks after hatching. It is far more often heard than seen, slipping quietly through dense understory and flushing only at close range with a loud whirr.
Temperament
solitary and secretive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with explosive flush; prefers to run
Social Behavior
Usually encountered singly or in pairs within dense understory. Nesting occurs on the ground in a concealed scrape. Males incubate and care for the chicks, often from a clutch laid by multiple females. Territorial calling is most frequent at dawn and dusk.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A low, mournful series of clear, whistled notes that carry far through the forest. Phrases are repeated at intervals, often given from concealed perches on the ground or a low log, especially in early morning and late afternoon.
Plumage
Overall dusky brown to rufescent-brown with fine mottling and subtle barring on the back and flanks; underparts buffy to grayish with a paler throat; texture smooth and compact for cryptic camouflage.
Diet
Feeds on fallen fruits and seeds gleaned from the forest floor, supplemented by insects such as beetles, ants, and termites. It also takes small invertebrates and occasionally tender leaves or buds. Foraging is deliberate, sifting through leaf litter and snapping up items with quick pecks.
Preferred Environment
Most often forages in interior terra firme and white-sand forests with thick leaf litter and sparse light. It frequents edges of trails and natural openings, and may visit the base of fruiting trees where food accumulates.
