CreatureData

Plain chachalaca

Ortalis vetula (Wagler, 1830)

LCLeast Concernbirds

The plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula) is a species in the family Cracidae, order Galliformes. Recorded adults weigh 542 g to 584 g and live up to 4.5 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula)
Photo: Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the plain chachalaca

Weight
542 g – 584 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
4.5 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Frugivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
8.83 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
shrublandsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
24 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
3src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
12 months – 15 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
2src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the plain chachalaca live?

Not recorded

What is the plain chachalaca?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula) is a large bird in the chachalaca, guan and curassow family Cracidae. It breeds in tropical and subtropical environments from mezquital thickets in the Rio Grande Valley in southernmost Texas, United States to northernmost Costa Rica. In Central America, this species occurs in the Pacific lowlands from Chiapas, Mexico to northern Nicaragua and as a separate population in Costa Rica, where its range is separated by a short distance, as a disjunct population.

This species frequents dry and moist forests, especially where interspersed with scrub and savanna. Usually found in groups of up to 15 birds, the plain chachalaca is furtive and wary and prefers to escape from danger by running swiftly on the ground or leaping and gliding through brushy tangles. The plain chachalaca feeds in trees or on the ground on fruit (figs, palms, Sapotaceae), seeds, leaves, and flowers. It is sometimes a pest of crops such as tomatoes and cucumbers.

The call is a loud, raucous RAW-pa-haw or cha-cha-LAW-ka, often by several birds in a rhythmical chorus, especially in early morning and evening, usually from well up in trees. It also produces peeping whistles and cackles. Others describe chachalaca calls as irritating noises mimicking a bunch of men arguing. The plain chachalaca typically breeds in the early wet season. The nest is a shallow saucer of twigs and plant fibers, lined with leaves, in thick vegetation. The clutch is 2–4 rough-shelled white to cream eggs.

From the Wikipedia article “Plain chachalaca” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Plain_chachalaca&oldid=1356969524), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the plain chachalaca endangered?

The plain chachalaca is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the plain chachalaca classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderGalliformes
  5. familyCracidae
  6. genusOrtalis
  7. SpeciesOrtalis vetula (Wagler, 1830)
Other names and names in other languages (38)
  • شاشالاكا عاديArabic
  • txatxalaca de planaCatalan
  • čačalaka obecnáCzech
  • cacalaca plaenWelsh
  • Brun ChachalacaDanish
  • BlauflügelguanGerman
  • BraunflügelguanGerman
  • Golfa ortaloEsperanto
  • bruna ĉaĉalakoEsperanto
  • Chachalaca vetulaSpanish
  • Chachalaca norteñaSpanish
  • Chachalaca OliváceaSpanish
  • Chachalaca OrientalSpanish
  • võsa-tšatšalakaEstonian
  • jukataninkaklattajaFinnish
  • Ortalide chacamelFrench
  • sivoleđa čačalakaCroatian
  • fakó erdeityúkHungarian
  • Ciacialaca comuneItalian
  • Ciacialaca disadornoItalian
  • ムジヒメシャクケイJapanese
  • rudasparnė čačalakaLithuanian
  • pelēkā čačalakaLatvian
  • Bruine ChachalacaDutch
  • kratthokkoNorwegian
  • czakalaka północnaPolish
  • aracuã-nortenhoPortuguese
  • aracuã-de-asas-azuisPortuguese
  • chachalaca-do-nortePortuguese
  • Бурокрылая чачалакаRussian
  • šuan plodožravýSlovak
  • čačalaka plodožraváSlovak
  • Obična čačalakaSerbian
  • nordlig chachalacaSwedish
  • Kuzey ÇaçalakasıTurkish
  • чачалака східнаUkrainian
  • 纯色小冠雉Chinese
  • 小灰頭稚冠雉Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the plain chachalaca

Other species in the same genus Ortalis.

ComparePlain chachalaca vs Rufous-vented chachalacaPlain chachalaca vs Chaco chachalacaPlain chachalaca vs Speckled chachalacaPlain chachalaca vs Rufous-headed chachalaca

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the plain chachalaca?

An adult plain chachalaca weighs 542 g – 584 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the plain chachalaca endangered?

The plain chachalaca is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the plain chachalaca live?

The plain chachalaca has a recorded lifespan of 4.5 years.

What kind of animal is the plain chachalaca?

The plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula) belongs to the family Cracidae in the order Galliformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/plain-chachalaca

MLA

“Plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/plain-chachalaca.

BibTeX
@misc{plain_chachalaca_2026,
  title = {Plain chachalaca (Ortalis vetula)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/plain-chachalaca},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}