Chachalacas, Guans and Curassows (Cracidae)

Alagoas Curassow (Mitu mitu) - HBW 2, p. 358

French: Hocco mitou German: Mituhokko Spanish: Paují de Alagoas

Taxonomy: Crax Mitu Linnaeus, 1766, Brazil and Guiana = north eastern Brazil.
Mentioned by Marcgraf in 1648, its true existence was questioned for a long time until its rediscovery in 1951. All members of genus form superspecies; all have been placed, together with the members of Pauxi, and less often Nothocrax, in Crax. Often considered conspecific with M. tuberosa (see page 315). Monotypic.

Distribution: NE Brazilian coast, in recent decades only in Alagoas; formerly also in E Pernambuco; report of occurrence in N Bahia seems to be unreliable. Probably now extinct, or virtually so, in the wild.