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| − | [[Image: | + | \mikemik[[Image:TZP AfricanEmerald Cuckoo SER7011.jpg|thumb|500px|right|nominate ssp<br />Photo © by {{user|mikemik|mikemik}}<br />Serengeti, [[Tanzania]], May 2018]] |
;[[:Category:Centropus|Centropus]] superciliosus | ;[[:Category:Centropus|Centropus]] superciliosus | ||
'''Includes: Burchell's Coucal''' | '''Includes: Burchell's Coucal''' | ||
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
| − | [[Image:White-browed_Coucal.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile<br />Photo by {{user|juninho|juninho}}<br />Maasai Mara NP, [[Kenya]], August 2005]] | + | [[Image:White-browed_Coucal.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile<br />Photo © by {{user|juninho|juninho}}<br />Maasai Mara NP, [[Kenya]], August 2005]] |
36–42 cm (14-16½ in) | 36–42 cm (14-16½ in) | ||
*Dark brown head | *Dark brown head | ||
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*Long tail | *Long tail | ||
====Variations==== | ====Variations==== | ||
| − | ''burchelli''lacks the white superciliary stripe | + | ''burchelli'' lacks the white superciliary stripe |
==Distribution== | ==Distribution== | ||
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'''Middle East''': [[Arabian Peninsula]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]], [[Socotra]] | '''Middle East''': [[Arabian Peninsula]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]], [[Socotra]] | ||
==Taxonomy== | ==Taxonomy== | ||
| − | [[Image:12368Burchells_Coucal_rudydbn_IllovoGlen.jpg|thumb|350px|right|''burchellii''<br />Photo by {{user|rudydbn|rudydbn}} <br />Illovo Glen, [[KwaZulu-Natal]], [[South Africa]], October 2004]] | + | [[Image:12368Burchells_Coucal_rudydbn_IllovoGlen.jpg|thumb|350px|right|''burchellii''<br />Photo © by {{user|rudydbn|rudydbn}} <br />Illovo Glen, [[KwaZulu-Natal]], [[South Africa]], October 2004]] |
====Subspecies==== | ====Subspecies==== | ||
''Centropus superciliosus'' has four subspecies<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>: | ''Centropus superciliosus'' has four subspecies<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>: | ||
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:*from east [[Botswana]] to southern [[Zimbabwe]], [[Mozambique]] and [[South Africa]] | :*from east [[Botswana]] to southern [[Zimbabwe]], [[Mozambique]] and [[South Africa]] | ||
''C. burchellii'' is sometimes accepted as full species, '''Burchell's Coucal'''. | ''C. burchellii'' is sometimes accepted as full species, '''Burchell's Coucal'''. | ||
| − | [[Image:Burchell s Coucal2.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Burchell's Coucal<br />Photo by {{user|George+Koninis|George Koninis}}<br />[[Kruger National Park]], [[South Africa]], October 2012]] | + | [[Image:Burchell s Coucal2.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Burchell's Coucal<br />Photo © by {{user|George+Koninis|George Koninis}}<br />[[Kruger National Park]], [[South Africa]], October 2012]] |
==Habitat== | ==Habitat== | ||
Riverine bush and wetlands. | Riverine bush and wetlands. | ||
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As with other Coucals, the White-browed Coucal is non-parasitic. The males construct a nest, they then incubate the eggs and provide most of the feeding and care for the young. | As with other Coucals, the White-browed Coucal is non-parasitic. The males construct a nest, they then incubate the eggs and provide most of the feeding and care for the young. | ||
====Diet==== | ====Diet==== | ||
| − | [[Image:White-browed Coucal puffed up 8754.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Puffed up behaviour<br />Photo by {{user|rdavis|rdavis}}<br />Near Xigera Camp, central Okavango Delta, [[Botswana]], November 2011]] | + | [[Image:White-browed Coucal puffed up 8754.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Puffed up behaviour<br />Photo © by {{user|rdavis|rdavis}}<br />Near Xigera Camp, central Okavango Delta, [[Botswana]], November 2011]] |
It has a wide diet consisting mostly of insects, but it will also take young birds and eggs. While it will feed on the ground it is easily disturbed, returning to cover in a clumsy, awkward fashion. These birds are not elegant fliers! | It has a wide diet consisting mostly of insects, but it will also take young birds and eggs. While it will feed on the ground it is easily disturbed, returning to cover in a clumsy, awkward fashion. These birds are not elegant fliers! | ||
====Vocalisation==== | ====Vocalisation==== | ||
They have a very distinctive song which consists of a series of "gurgling" notes which resemble the sound of water being poured from a bottle and gives them their local Kenyan name of "The Water Bottle Bird". | They have a very distinctive song which consists of a series of "gurgling" notes which resemble the sound of water being poured from a bottle and gives them their local Kenyan name of "The Water Bottle Bird". | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
| − | #{{Ref- | + | #{{Ref-Clements6thAug17}}#Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved November 2016) |
{{ref}} | {{ref}} | ||
==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
Revision as of 09:58, 1 June 2018
\mikemik
- Centropus superciliosus
Includes: Burchell's Coucal
Identification
36–42 cm (14-16½ in)
- Dark brown head
- Broad white supercilium
- Creamy underparts
- Long tail
Variations
burchelli lacks the white superciliary stripe
Distribution
Central, southern and eastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
Western Africa: Gabon, DRC and Angola
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Pemba Island, Mafia Island, Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi
Southern Africa: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho
Middle East: Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Socotra
Taxonomy
Subspecies
Centropus superciliosus has four subspecies[1]:
- C. s. superciliosus:
- C. s. sokotrae:
- C. s. loandae:
- C. s. burchellii:
- from east Botswana to southern Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa
C. burchellii is sometimes accepted as full species, Burchell's Coucal.
Habitat
Riverine bush and wetlands.
Behaviour
It can be difficult to see due to its habit of skulking in shrubbery, undergrowth and dense waterside vegetation.
Breeding
As with other Coucals, the White-browed Coucal is non-parasitic. The males construct a nest, they then incubate the eggs and provide most of the feeding and care for the young.
Diet
It has a wide diet consisting mostly of insects, but it will also take young birds and eggs. While it will feed on the ground it is easily disturbed, returning to cover in a clumsy, awkward fashion. These birds are not elegant fliers!
Vocalisation
They have a very distinctive song which consists of a series of "gurgling" notes which resemble the sound of water being poured from a bottle and gives them their local Kenyan name of "The Water Bottle Bird".
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved November 2016)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) White-browed Coucal. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/White-browed_Coucal
External Links
