Common hawk-cuckoo
Common hawk-cuckoo | |
---|---|
Sub-adult | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Cuculiformes
|
Family: | Cuculidae |
Genus: | Hierococcyx |
Species: | H. varius
|
Binomial name | |
Hierococcyx varius (
Vahl , 1797) | |
Synonyms | |
Cuculus varius |
The common hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius), popularly known as the brainfever bird, is a medium-sized
Description
The common hawk-cuckoo is a medium- to large-sized cuckoo, about the size of a pigeon (ca. 34 cm). The plumage is ashy grey above; whitish below, cross-barred with brown. The tail is broadly barred. The sexes are alike. They have a distinctive yellow eye ring. Subadults have the breast streaked, similar to the immature shikra, and there are large brown chevron marks on the belly.[4] At first glance they can be mistaken for a hawk. When flying they use a flap and glide style that resembles that of sparrowhawks (especially the shikra) and flying upwards and landing on a perch they shake their tails from side to side. Many small birds and squirrels raise the alarm just as they would in the presence of a hawk. The sexes are alike, but males tend to be larger.[5]
They can be confused with the large hawk-cuckoo, which, however, has dark streaks on the throat and breast. Young birds have a pale chin, but young large hawk-cuckoos have a black chin.[6]
During summer months, before the monsoons, the males are easily detected by their repeated calls but can be difficult to spot. The call is a loud screaming three-note call, repeated 5 or 6 times, rising in crescendo and ending abruptly. It is heard throughout the day and frequently during moonlit nights.[7] The calls of females are a series of grating notes.[5] Common hawk-cuckoos feed mainly on insects and are specialised feeders that can handle hairy caterpillars. Caterpillar guts often contain toxins and like many cuckoos they remove the guts by pressing the caterpillar and rubbing it on a branch before swallowing it. The hairs are swallowed with the caterpillar and are separated in the stomach and regurgitated as a pellet.[6]
Taxonomy and systematics
The type locality of the species is
Distribution
The common hawk-cuckoo occurs in most of the
The species is arboreal and rarely descends to the ground. Its habitat includes garden land, groves of tree, deciduous and semi-evergreen forests.[5]
Behaviour and ecology
Like many other cuckoos, this species is a
Its breeding season is March to June, coinciding with that of some of the Turdoides babblers. A single egg is laid in each nest, blue, like that of the host. The hatchling usually evicts the eggs of its host and is reared to maturity by foster parents, following them for nearly a month.
Parasitic eye-worms in the genus Oxyspirura have been found in the orbital cavity of the species.[16]
In culture
The call of this bird has been popularly transcribed as brain-fever in
, "the rains are coming"). In Bodo, the call sounds like "haab fisha houwa", which means dear son (where are you).The call "Pee kahan" or "Papeeha" is more accurately represented by the shrill screaming "pi-peeah" of the large hawk-cuckoo
The brainfever bird's call may be heard all through the day, starting early before dawn and frequently during moonlit nights.[7] A novel by the Indian author Allan Sealy is named after this bird.[18]
References
- . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ Gyldenstolpe, N (1926). "Types of birds in the Royal Natural History Museum in Stockholm" (PDF). Arkiv för Zoologi. 19A: 1–116.
- PMID 18467298. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2011-06-03.
- ^ a b c d Rasmussen, PC; JC Anderton (2005). Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Vol. 2. Smithsonian Institution & Lynx Edicions. p. 229.
- ^ a b c d e Ali S, Ripley SD (1981). Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan. Volume 3 (2nd ed.). New Delhi: Oxford University Press. pp. 200–202.
- ^ ISBN 0-19-850213-3.
- ^ ISBN 0-19-566523-6.
- ^ Vahl, MH (1797). Skrivter af Naturhistorie-Selskabet, Kjøbenhavn, 4, Heft 1. p. 60.
- ^ Phillips, WWA (1949). "A new race of the Common Hawk Cuckoo from Ceylon". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 69 (6): 56–57.
- ^ "BirdLife International (2022) Species factsheet:Hierococcyx varius". datazone.birdlife.org. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ Gaston, AJ; Zacharias VJ (2000). "Hosts of the Common Hawk Cuckoo" (PDF). Forktail. 16: 182. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-08-28. Retrieved 2009-05-31.
- ^ Jerdon, TC (1862). The birds of India. Volume 1. Military Orphan Press. p. 330.
- doi:10.11609/jott.zpj.16.8.554-6. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2009-06-03.
- ^ Blanford, WT (1895). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Birds Volume 3. Taylor and Francis, London. pp. 213–214.
- ^ Lushington, Cicely (1949). "Change in habits of the Ceylon Hawk-Cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius ciceliae Phillips)". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 48 (3): 582–584.
- S2CID 9569721.
- ^ Finn, Frank (1904). The birds of Calcutta. Thacker, Spink & Co.
- ISBN 0-330-41205-1.
Other sources
- Whistler, H (1918). "The Common Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx varius in the Punjab". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 26 (1): 287.
- Osmaston, AE (1912). "Eggs of the Large Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx sparverioides". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 21 (4): 1330–1331.
- Umar, M (1977). "On the onset of brain-fever". Newsletter for Birdwatchers. 17 (2): 9.
- Himmatsinhji, MK (1980). "The Common Hawk-Cuckoo, Cuculus varius Vahl in Kutch". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 77 (2): 329.
- Waite, HW (1963). "The Common Hawk-Cuckoo (Cuculus varius varius Vahl) in the Punjab". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 60 (1): 260.
- Gay, Thomas (1976). "Onset of 'brain-fever'". Newsletter for Birdwatchers. 16 (3): 15.
- Mohan, D (1976). "Onset of brainfever". Newsletter for Birdwatchers. 16 (5): 11.
- Ramamoorthi, MS (1976). "Onset of Brainfever". Newsletter for Birdwatchers. 16 (5): 9–11.
- Gay, T (1988). "First calls of the Common Hawk Cuckoo". Newsletter for Birdwatchers. 28 (3–4): 16.