Chestnut-bellied Cuckoo
Coccyzus pluvialis
A large species with an impressive tail and a chestnut belly. Found in wooded habitats between 400 and 1500 meters in elevation, particularly wet, open forests; stalks prey by walking and sometimes running along tree limbs. Flight is often a rapid flapping followed by long glide. The Jamaican Lizard-Cuckoo is similar in overall shape, but it is somewhat smaller, has a longer straighter bill, and a buff (not chestnut) belly. This species is often heard before it is seen. Call is a low, harsh, growling “aahhhh” or “aahhhh-ahh.”
Identification
The chestnut-bellied cuckoo is 48 to 56 cm (19 to 22 in) long, about half of which is the tail, and weighs 130 to 189 g (4.6 to 6.7 oz). The species' blackish bill is stout and decurved. Males and females have the same plumage. Adults have dull brown upperparts, a light gray face and breast with a paler throat, and a dark rufous belly. Their tail is black with large white tips and a purple gloss. Juveniles have a dark brown tail with white tips but no gloss.
Taxonomy
The chestnut-bellied cuckoo was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other cuckoos in the genus Cuculus and coined the binomial name Cuculus pluvialis. Gmelin based his account on those of earlier authors include that of the Irish physician, naturalist and collector Hans Sloane. Between 1687 and 1689 Sloane lived in Jamaica. In the account of his stay, which was not published until 1725, he described the chestnut-bellied cuckoo under the names "Old-Man" and "Raine-bird" and explained that "It makes a noise generally before rain, whence it had its name of Rain Bird". The chestnut-bellied cuckoo is now placed with 12 other species in the genus Coccyzus that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kokkuzō meaning "to cry cuckoo". The specific epithet pluvialis is Latin meaning "relating to rain". <p>The chestnut-bellied cuckoo was at one time placed in genus Piaya which was later merged into genus Hyetornis. That genus was in turn merged into the current Coccyzus. The species is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Coccyzus pluvialis
- Authority
- (Gmelin, JF, 1788)
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Coccyzus
Range and habitat
The chestnut-bellied cuckoo is found throughout most of Jamaica. It inhabits mature evergreen forest, secondary forest, thickets and brushy areas, and semi-open woodlands. In elevation it ranges from sea level to above 1,500 m (4,900 ft).
- Migration
- Vertical migration
Behavior
The chestnut-bellied cuckoo moves to the lower elevations of its range during winter.<p>The chestnut-bellied cuckoo has a varied diet that includes adult insects, caterpillars, lizards, nestling birds, and eggs. It forages mostly from the forest mid-story to the canopy, running along branches and gliding from tree to tree. It usually forages alone.<p>The chestnut-bellied cuckoo's breeding season is usually between March and June but may start in February. It makes a shallow twig nest in a tree at up to 10 m (30 ft) above the ground. The clutch size is two to four eggs; the incubation period and time to fledging are not known.<p>The chestnut-bellied cuckoo's principal vocalization is a "[h]oarse 'quak-quak-ak-ak-ak-ak', slow, then accelerating towards [the] end."
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Mirafra pulpa
A small, compact lark with dark brown upperparts that appear scaly in fresh plumage, a streaked crown that can be raised as a crest, an indistinct tawny eyebrow, a striking pale throat, and a pale belly with dark breast streaks. The bill is bicolored: pale below with a dark ridge on the upper mandible. The tail is mostly dark with white outer feathers that are conspicuous in flight. Movements of this very localized lark are poorly known, but small groups are probably partial migrants and nomads in dense grassland with scattered bush; likely often goes undetected when not singing. Best identification feature is the diagnostic song, a single-note strident loud up-and-down “wheeeeoooo” whistle, repeated incessantly every two seconds for minutes at a time.
Raiatea Fruit-Dove
Ptilinopus chrysogaster
An unmistakable dove with a bright silver head, neck, and chest, dark green wings, a light green belly, and a yellowish tint to the forehead. Bill is bright banana yellow. Unique within its range. Call is a typical dove-like cooing, starting with “wooo wooo” followed by sounds likened to a taunting laughter.
Black Rail
Laterallus jamaicensis
Tiny rail, the size of a sparrow and nearly impossible to see without tremendous effort. Slate gray overall with a piercing red eye, brown nape, and white spotting on wings. Beware confusion with downy young of other rail species, which are entirely black. Inhabits drier areas in fresh and saltwater marshes with cattail, sedge, and other tall grasses. Typically rare even in proper habitat. Incredibly difficult to locate even when vocalizing within mere feet of an observer; stealthily dashes around at the base of dense grass like a ninja. Easiest to detect by its distinctive song, most often heard at night: a churring "kick-ee-derr", two higher notes followed by a lower note.
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