Crotophagidae
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Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Cuculiformes
Family: Crotophagidae
Synonyms: Crotophaginae

[Photo] Groove-billed Ani (Crotophaga sulcirostris). Continent: North America,Country: United States,U.S. State: Hawaii,City or Place Name: Maui. Creator: John Mosesso, Jr. Publisher: National Biological Information Infrastructure. URL: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Crotophaga_ani_NBII_cropped.jpg

The anis (Crotophagidae) are a small family of gregarious birds occurring in the new world. They are part of the cuckoo order Cuculiformes and sometimes placed as a subfamily Crotophaginae within the cuckoo family Cuculidae.

Among the anis, there is considerable variation in nesting habits. One species, The greater ani C. major lays 2 or 3 eggs, while the groove-billed ani C. sulcirostris lays seven. However the smooth-billed ani C. ani will share one nest between several females, with up to 29 eggs in one nest! Incubation takes 15 days for this species. The nesting habits of the guira cuckoo are unknown.

Systematics
Genus Guira:
- Guira Cuckoo, Guira guira
Genus Crotophaga:
- Greater Ani, Crotophaga major
- Smooth-billed Ani, Crotophaga ani
- Groove-billed Ani, Crotophaga sulcirostris
- - Cabo San Lucas Groove-billed Ani, Crotophaga sulcirostris pallidula - probably invalid; extinct (c.1940)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crotophaginae

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