Asian drongo-cuckoo

Surniculus lugubris

SUBFAMILY

Cuculinae

TAXONOMY

Cuculus lugubris Horsfield, 1821, Java. Four subspecies.

OTHER COMMON NAMES

French: Coucou surnicou d'Asie; German: Drongokuckuck; Spanish: Cuclillo-drongo Asiático.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

9.8 in (25 cm), 1.2 oz (35 g). Glossy black, tail square, white bands on undertail coverts and underwing, iris brown, bill black.

DISTRIBUTION

Punjab and lower Himalayas east through Nepal to Assam, from South Central China to Indochina, South India, Sri Lanka, Java, Bali, Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, and North Moluccas.

HABITAT

Open forests and scrubs, bamboo jungle; occasionally gardens and mangroves.

BEHAVIOR

Resident, seasonally migratory and nomadic. The northern subspecies winters on Malaysia.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Caterpillars and other soft insects, sometimes figs.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Brood parasitic; hosts are mainly babblers; nestlings evict the eggs and chicks of hosts.

CONSERVATION STATUS

Not globally threatened. Unevenly distributed within its range.

SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS

None known.

Asian Drongo-cuckoo
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Cuculiformes Family: Cuculidae Genus: Surniculus Species: S. lugubris
Binomial name
Surniculus lugubris (Horsfield, 1821)

The Asian Drongo-cuckoo Surniculus lugubris is a species of cuckoo that resembles a Black Drongo. It can be easily distinguished by its straight beak and the white barred vent. It is a brood parasite on small babblers. It is not known how or whether the drongo-like appearance benefits this species.

It shares the genus Surniculus with the Philippine Drongo-cuckoo Surniculus velutinus. This is usually treated as a subspecies of S. lugubris, but can be separated as a species on the basis of vocalization and juvenile plumage.

Some recent work suggests that the species may need to be split into two recognized forms- Square-tailed and Fork-tailed.^[1]

References

1. ^ Rasmussen, P. C & Anderton 2005 Birds of South Asia:The Ripley Guide. Smithsonian and Lynx Edicions

• BirdLife International (2004). Surniculus lugubris. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern

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