The Guan Is a Loud Tree-Dwelling Bird
A guan is a large bird of Central and South American forests. Its name came from a local language.
A guan is a large, mostly arboreal bird of Central and South American forests, related to the curassow and the chachalaca. Guans spend almost all their time in the canopy, feeding on fruit, and several species produce a loud drumming sound by vibrating specially stiffened wing feathers in flight — the noise carries far through dense forest where sight is useless. The name came into English through Spanish from an indigenous Caribbean language.
- A forest bird. *A crested guan.*
- Arboreal. *Living in the canopy.*
- Curassow — a relative. *A curassow.*
- Chachalaca — another relative. *A chachalaca.*
- Spanish — from a Caribbean language. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | guan | A guan. |
| Plural | guans | Guans. |
| Family | Cracidae | Cracidae. |
| Related | curassow | A curassow. |
| Related | chachalaca | A chachalaca. |
- A guan called from the canopy.Bird.
- Guans feed mainly on fruit.Diet.
- The wings make a drumming sound.Fact.
Sounds made without a voice
- Guans drum with stiffened wing feathers in flight
- Snipe produce a bleating sound with their tail feathers
- Woodpeckers drum on resonant wood to signal territory
- Manakins snap their wings loudly in display
- All of these carry through forest where a call might not
Spanish *guán*, from an indigenous Caribbean language, recorded in English from the 1700s.
What is a guan?
A large forest bird of Central and South America, related to curassows, which spends most of its life in the canopy feeding on fruit.
How do guans make their drumming sound?
By vibrating specially stiffened wing feathers in flight, producing a noise that carries through dense forest.