NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
White-crested Guan
Penelope pileata Wagler, 1830
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The white-crested guan (Penelope pileata) is a species of bird in the family Cracidae, the chachalacas, guans, and curassows. It is found only in regions of the eastern Amazon basin of Brazil. The species is restricted to the southern riverbank of the Amazon River; also eastwards, the south bank of the Pará River south of Marajó Island at the Amazon River's outlet. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest. It is threatened by habitat destruction and in 2012, the species was recategorised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, its conservation status being raised to vulnerable.
Wikipedia contributors, White-crested guan; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:16:03.851044+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Penelope pileata Wagler, 1830
- Name authority
- Wagler, 1830
- Common name
- White-crested Guan
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Cracidae
- Genus
- Penelope
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderGalliformes
- familyCracidae
- subfamilyPenelopinae
- genusPenelope Merrem, 1786
- speciesPenelope pileata Wagler, 1830
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Penelope. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Dusky-legged GuanPenelope obscura Temminck, 1815 | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rusty-margined GuanPenelope superciliaris Temminck, 1815 | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Andean GuanPenelope montagnii (Bonaparte, 1856) | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chestnut-bellied GuanPenelope ochrogaster Pelzeln, 1870 | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cauca GuanPenelope perspicax Bangs, 1911 | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yungas GuanPenelope bridgesi G. R. Gray, 1860 | CracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=175740 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:76GQH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.