Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo
Hierococcyx nisicolor
Large hawk-like cuckoo of dense forests, where it usually forages deep in the canopy. Adult gray above and pale below, with gray and orange blotches and loose streaks on breast. Juvenile similar but streaked with brown below, similar to juvenile Malaysian Hawk-Cuckoo, but the latter has a prominent white patch on the nape and evenly distributed tail bands, lacking in Hodgson’s. Far more often heard than seen; song is very unlike that of other hawk-cuckoos: two sharp notes, usually (not always) followed by a series of clattering trills.
Identification
Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx nisicolor), also known as the whistling hawk-cuckoo, is a species of cuckoo found in north-eastern India, Myanmar, southern China and southeast Asia. Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo is a brood parasite. The chick evicts bona fide residents of the parasitized nest, thus becoming the sole occupant. Under normal circumstances, this would reduce the provisioning rate as the foster parents see only one gape. To counteract this, the Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo displays gape-coloured patches of skin under its wing to simulate additional gapes; the strategy appears to increase the provisioning rate. This is in contrast to other species of cuckoo (such as the common cuckoo) which increase the rapidity of high pitched hunger calls to increase the provisioning rate. Although the skin patch is not gape shaped, it is convincing: host parents occasionally place food into the patch. Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo was formerly regarded as having four subspecies. The Philippine hawk-cuckoo is now commonly treated as a separate species, H. pectoralis. The remaining forms are also now split into three species: Malaysian hawk-cuckoo (H. fugax), Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo (H. nisicolor) and rufous hawk-cuckoo or northern hawk-cuckoo (H. hyperythrus). The common name commemorates the British naturalist Brian Houghton Hodgson.
Taxonomy
Genus: Hierococcyx; Family: Cuculidae; Order: Cuculiformes.
- Scientific name
- Hierococcyx nisicolor
- Authority
- (Blyth, 1843)
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Hierococcyx
Range and habitat
Breeding range: OR : Nepal and e Himalayas to Myanmar, Thailand and Hainan I.. Non-breeding range: s to Greater Sundas.
- Breeding range
- OR : Nepal and e Himalayas to Myanmar, Thailand and Hainan I.
- Non-breeding range
- s to Greater Sundas
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Fairly large trogon of pine and pine-oak forests in highlands; usually at upper levels in trees and often rather shy. Male is striking, with big, bold white squares on underside of tail. Female has broken white eyering on brown head and coarse black-and-white pattern under the tail. Elegant Trogon overlaps in range and can be told from Mountain by the coppery color on the top of the tail (male) or by the white stripe behind the eye (female). Also note the finely patterned tail on both male and female Elegant Trogons. The similar but smaller Collared Trogon is found mainly at lower elevation and has much finer barring on the underside of the tail.
White-throated Fantail
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A distinctive fantail, all dark except for a white throat and a short white eyebrow. The tail, often fanned, is a shade darker with white tips to all tail feathers except the central pair. Juvenile is like adult, but with reduced white on face and brownish edges to the dark body feathers. Gives very harsh contact calls. Song is a musical phrase of 6-7 notes that ascends first and then descends. Found in a wide range of wooded habitats, from dense forest to forest edge and gardens, from lowlands up into the mountains.
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