Great Blue Turaco
Corythaeola cristata
Wonderful, cartoonish bird. Note the tall black crest and the red-and-yellow bill. The tail pattern is distinctive in flight: note the black bar across the end of the tail and the pale green sides. Found in rainforest, gallery forest, and lush secondary habitat. Usually in small groups. Gives two distinctive calls, sometimes in conjunction: a deep “jeeeow” and a rapid, cackling series of incredibly loud notes.
Identification
Generally, the great blue turaco is 70–76 cm (28–30 in) in length with a mass of 800–1,231 g (1.764–2.714 lb). The adult great blue turaco has predominantly gray-blue upperparts with an upright blue-black crest, white chin, yellow-green lower breast and yellow belly darkening to chestnut brown posteriorly. The undertail coverts are chestnut, and the undertail is black and yellowish. The yellow bill has an orange-red tip, the eyes are brown, and surrounded by a ring of black bare skin. The legs and feet are black with yellow soles. The sexes have similar plumage.
Taxonomy
French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot described the great blue turaco as Musophaga cristata in 1816, before German ornithologist Ferdinand Heine placed it in its own genus in 1860.<p>The great blue turaco is the sole member of the subfamily Corythaeolinae within the turaco family. Its closest relatives are the go-away birds and plantain eaters of the genus Crinifer. The common ancestor of both diverged from the ancestor of all other turaco species.<p>"Great blue turaco" has been designated the official common name by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC). It is also called blue plantain eater.
- Scientific name
- Corythaeola cristata
- Authority
- (Vieillot, 1816)
- Order
- Musophagiformes
- Family
- Musophagidae
- Genus
- Corythaeola
Range and habitat
The species ranges from Guinea in the west, and east across the sub-Saharan nations to the Imatong Mountains in South Sudan; it also occurs in Uganda, Tanzania and western Kenya, south to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola. It inhabits rainforests and gallery forests. It has also adapted to areas cleared by humans and can thrive in these areas.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The great blue turaco is gregarious, with birds forming small troops of some six or seven individuals.<p>The great blue turaco eats leaves, flowers, as well as fruit of many plant species, including those of the genera Musanga, Cissus, Ficus (such as Ficus capensis) Polyalthia, Heisteria, Dacryodes, Pachypodanthium, Uapaca, Strombosia, Trichilia, Drypetes, Viscum, Beilschmiedia, Coelocaryon, Croton, and Pycnanthus. In Kenya, it has been recorded eating mitzeeri (Bridelia micrantha) in April, loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) in July, guava (Psidium guajava) in September and Cordia africana over November and December. Fieldwork in Rwanda revealed leaves constituted around 25% of its diet, being eaten more often when fruit is less abundant. The species also play a role in seed dispersal as it generally passes seed in its faeces some distance from parent trees.<p>The species nests in trees between 8 and 25 metres (26 and 82 ft) above the ground, and the nest is a platform of sticks. Both sexes incubate the clutch of two (rarely one or three) eggs over 29–31 days. The eggs are white or greenish-white and almost round, measuring 46–50 mm by 41–43 mm (1.8–2.0 in by 1.6–1.7 in).
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Siamese Fireback
Lophura diardi
Remarkably plumaged terrestrial bird of lowland and foothill broadleaf forests, most often encountered on trails and roadsides in the early morning. Male blue-gray with a bright red face and long, glossy black tail. Namesake “fire back”, a splotch of bright iridescent coloration on the rump, is difficult to see. Female brown with black-and-white banded wings and smaller red facial skin patch. Similar female Silver Pheasant lacks prominent wing barring. Male whistles loudly to attract females.
Emei Leaf Warbler
Phylloscopus emeiensis
Brightly-marked medium-sized leaf warbler. Bright yellow-green above with two long yellow wingbars, white underparts, a broad yellowish eyebrow, and a pale crown stripe. Bill is long and bicolored: gray above, orange below. Most similar in appearance to “Blyth’s-type” warblers, but crown stripe narrower and less diffuse. “White-tailed-type” warblers such as Davison’s can also be similar, but Emei averages duller green above with less intense yellow areas. Breeding range highly restricted: only known from a handful of sites in central China, where it is found in mid- to high-altitude hill and montane deciduous broadleaveded or mixed forests. Wintering range essentially unknown, but has turned up in Myanmar. Song is a medium-length resonant trill; calls include “chup” and “chew”.
Malagasy Brush-Warbler
Nesillas typica
Medium-sized brown bird with a long, spiky tail. Found in a wide variety of moist and woody habitats, including rainforest, wet scrub, plantations, and gardens. Absent or very local in much of west and southwest Madagascar. Skulks in thick undergrowth. Incessantly given call is a Geiger counter-like ticking. Darker brown than Subdesert Brush-Warbler, with a lower-pitched call and little overlap in range. Similar to Madagascar Swamp-Warbler, but has less distinct breast streaking and white eyebrow, and is generally found in scrub rather than marsh.
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