Sirkeer Malkoha

Taccocua leschenaultii

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernInvertebratesForestCup nestMedium · 175 g

What the Sirkeer Malkoha sounds like

Sonogram of the Sirkeer Malkoha: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Mike Prince · Call · Thippagondanahalli (TG Halli) Reservoir, Bangalore Rural, Karnataka, India · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

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.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Sirkeer Malkoha

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is December, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Sirkeer Malkoha

Regular range

The map shades 4 countries with regular records. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

About the Sirkeer Malkoha

The sirkeer malkoha or sirkeer cuckoo, is a non-parasitic cuckoo found in dry scrub forest and open woodland habitats in the Indian subcontinent. The species is long-tailed, largely olive brown on the upper side with a distinctive curved red beak tipped in yellow. They forage singly or in pairs mainly on or close to the ground creeping between grasses and bushes, often on rocky habitats where they feed on small lizards, insects, and sometimes berries and seeds. They are very silent and the sexes are identical in plumage.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Side by side: Malagasy Coucal vs Sirkeer Malkoha · Chestnut-winged Cuckoo vs Sirkeer Malkoha · Lesser Roadrunner vs Sirkeer Malkoha

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