Bird Guide

Chestnut-winged Cuckoo vs Sirkeer Malkoha

Chestnut-winged Cuckoo (Clamator coromandus)

Chestnut-winged Cuckoo

Clamator coromandus

Medium75 gWoodland

This dark and crested cuckoo has chestnut wings, a glossy black crest and a graduated tail (the feathers shortening in steps from the center outwards) whose terminal edges are white and inconspicuous unlike the white tips of the Jacobin cuckoo which is found in parts of its range. The black capping on the head is broken from black of the back by a white collar that extends to the sides of the neck. The lower parts are rufous turning to dark grey towards the vent. Young birds are dusky with a scaly appearance to the wing feathers.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: sucker69420 · CC BY 4.0
Sirkeer Malkoha (Taccocua leschenaultii)

Sirkeer Malkoha

Taccocua leschenaultii

Medium175 gForest

The sirkeer cuckoo is about 42–44 centimetres (16+1⁄2–17+1⁄4 in) long with dark olive brown on the back, wings and the central tail feathers. The underside is rufous. A greenish gloss is visible on the wing and dark parts of the tail feathers. The feathers have dark shafts which are especially prominent on the breast as streaks. The tail is graduated (with outer feathers being sequentially shorter) and tipped broadly in white. The upper tail coverts are long. The chin, throat and breast are pale. The most distinctive feature is the curved red bill with a yellow tip.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Sirkeer Malkoha
Recorded by Mike Prince · Call · Thippagondanahalli (TG Halli) Reservoir, Bangalore Rural, Karnataka, India · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Кирилл · CC BY 2.5

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Chestnut-winged Cuckoo and Sirkeer Malkoha.