White-browed Coucal
Centropus superciliosus
A large, robust, ungainly cuckoo with rufous wings and a long, broad tail. Shows a solid dark cap and back of the head, and white underparts. Unlike other coucals, shows an obviously barred rump and upper tail coverts. It often moves clumsily, preferring to clamber about in rank vegetation or walk on the ground foraging for insects or small vertebrates. Its flight is labored and heavy. This species uses a wide variety of habitats with a thick understory, including savanna, woodland, forest edge, and wetlands. The song is a deep descending bubbling series, “bu-bu-bu bu bu bu bu”, that falls and then rises in pitch.
Identification
The white-browed coucal is a medium-sized species growing to 36 to 42 cm (14 to 17 in) in length. The sexes are similar, adults having a blackish crown and nape, a white supercilium, rufous-brown back, chestnut wings, blackish rump and black tail, glossed with green, with a white tip. The underparts are creamy-white, the eyes red, the beak black, and the legs and feet greyish-black or black. Juveniles have rufous streaking on the crown, a faint buff supercilium, barred upper parts and darker underparts.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Centropus superciliosus
- Authority
- Hemprich & Ehrenberg, 1829
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Centropus
Range and habitat
The white-browed coucal is native to eastern and southern Africa, and the southwestern part of the Arabian Peninsula. Its range includes Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe in Africa, as well as Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It is a common species with a very wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed it as a "least-concern species".
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Cliff Flycatcher
Hirundinea ferruginea
This unmistakable long-winged flycatcher is widespread (though rarely very numerous) throughout much of South America. As the name implies it occurs around cliffs, landslides, and even buildings. Medium size, warm rufous coloration (brightest on the wings), and habitat are distinctive. Some variation across range, with birds in the Andes having more whitish speckling on the face. Compare with Streak-throated Bush-Tyrant, which is larger and has a streaked throat. Usually seen singly or in pairs, perched conspicuously on a snag, rock face, powerline, or building.
Malagasy Coucal
Centropus toulou
A large, robust cuckoo with a black body and rufous wings. The head is pure black in breeding plumage and streaked white in non-breeding plumage. Found in a wide variety of habitats, including forest, scrub, plantations, savannah, and marsh. Generally skulks in thick vegetation, anywhere from the ground to high in the canopy, though will sometimes sing from an exposed perch. “Water bottle” song is a beautiful descending series of “boop” notes. Call is a long, dry rattle. Size, shape, and dark coloration make it distinctive within its range.
Van Hasselt's Sunbird
Leptocoma brasiliana
Attractive medium-sized sunbird of lowland forests, from coastal scrub forests to inland evergreen forests. Male is black with an iridescent pink-red throat, a red belly, and a glistening blue-green crown. Female is extensively yellowish with a pale vent and a thin dark line through the eye. Purple-throated Sunbird is essentially identical, but ranges do not overlap. Female Plain-throated Sunbird can be similar, but is straighter-billed, with a darker head, and a faint pale ring around the eye. Song, often given from an exposed perch, consists of squeaky rising whistles and chip notes.
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