They are found in tropical America from Texas to Argentina, where they inhabit forests within reach of the coast or wooded hills near rivers. They live on leaves and fruit. The nests are carelessly constructed on a level branch of a tree or bush.
Curassows vary in colour from black to blackish-green.
The great curassow is Crax rubra , and the helmeted curassow Pauxi pauxi . Other names of some subgroups of this family are the chachalacas and guans.