Tinamous

Tinamous form an order of birds (Tinamiformes), comprising a single family (Tinamidae) with two distinct subfamilies, containing 47 species found in Mexico, Central America, and South America. The word "tinamou" comes from the Galibi term for these birds, tinamu. One of the most ancient living groups of bird, they first appear in the fossil record in the Miocene epoch. Tinamous have traditionally been regarded as the sister group of the flightless ratites, but recent work places...