Alternative name: Crested Madagascar Coucal
- Coua cristata
Identification
44cm
- Green-grey
- Grey crest
- Blue orbital skin
- Rufous breast
- White belly
- Long purple-blue tail with white tip
- Brown iris
- Black bill
- Black legs
Distribution
Endemic to Madagascar.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 4 subspecies[1]:
- C. c. cristata:
- Northern and eastern Madagascar (south in the west to Mahajanga, and in the east to near Farafanga)
- C. c. dumonti:
- Western and central Madagascar (Mahajanga south to Morondava), broadly intergrading with pyropyga between the Tsiribihina and Mangoky Rivers)
- C. c. pyropyga:
- South-western and southern Madagascar (from the Mangoky River and Morondava east to just west of Tolagnaro in the western slopes of the Anosyenne Mountains and southeast along the coast)
- C. c. maxima:
- Status uncertain; known from a single specimen from south-eastern Madagascar (Tolagnaro region)
Habitat
Savanna, forest and brushland to 900m.
Behaviour
Diet
The diet includes insects, berries, seeds, fruit and snails.
Breeding
The nest is built from twigs. The clutch consists of 2 white eggs.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Wikipedia
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Crested Coua. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 30 November 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Crested_Coua
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
