Phoenicircus is a genus of birds in the family Cotingidae. They have a bright red breast, crown, tail, and rump with the Guianan species having dark brown wings and the black-necked species having black wings. They are frugivores, eating primarily berries and drupes.
Taxonomy The genus Phoenicircus was introduced in 1832 by the English naturalist William Swainson. The title page bears the year 1831 but the volume was not published until 1832. The type species was designated as the Guianan red cotinga by George Robert Gray in 1840. The name combines the Ancient Greek phoinikeos meaning "crimson" or "dark red" with kerkos meaning "tail".
The genus contains the following two species:
Image Scientific name Common name Distribution Phoenicircus carnifex Guianan red cotinga Guianas and lower Amazon river valley Phoenicircus nigricollis Black-necked red cotinga Amazonia
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