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Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo (Hierococcyx nisicolor)

Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo

Hierococcyx nisicolor

Least Concern

Overview

Hodgson's hawk-cuckoo, also known as the whistling hawk-cuckoo, is a species of cuckoo classified as Least Concern. It is a brood parasite whose chicks evict the host's own eggs to become the sole occupant of the nest.

Habitat

This species is found in north-eastern India, Myanmar, southern China and southeast Asia.

Diet

The nestling evicts the host's eggs and uses gape-coloured skin patches under its wings to simulate additional gapes, thereby increasing the provisioning rate from the foster parents.

Did you know?

Unlike other cuckoos that increase the rapidity of high-pitched hunger calls, this species displays skin patches under its wings that are so convincing host parents occasionally place food directly into them.

Sources