Cuckoo-shrikes
(Campephagidae)
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Suborder: Passeri (Oscines)
Family: Campephagidae
Thumbnail description
Small to medium-sized birds with broad-based bills, moderately long tails, and erectile rump feathers; some species are brightly colored
Size
5.5–14.5 in (14–37 cm); 0.2–6.3 oz (6–180 g)
Number of genera, species
9 genera; 74 species
Habitat
Forest, woodland, savanna, scrub, and mangroves
Conservation status
Endangered: 1 species; Vulnerable: 3 species; Near Threatened: 9 species; Data Deficient: 1 species
Distribution
Sub-Saharan Africa, southern and Southeast Asia to Australasia and the western Pacific islands
Evolution and systematics
Traditional classifications place the family Campephagidae between the wagtails and pipits (Motacillidae) and the bulbuls (Pycnonotidae). Nine genera are recognized: cuckoo-shrikes (Pteropodocys, Coracina, Campochaera, Chlamydochaera, and Campephaga), trillers (Lalage), minivets (Pericrocotus), flycatcher-shrikes (Hemipus), and woodshrikes (Tephrodornis).
DNA-DNA hybridization studies have suggested that the cuckoo-shrikes' closest relatives are the Old World orioles (Oriolidae). In 1990 Sibley and Monroe included both groups in the tribe Oriolinae within the expanded family Corvidae. This revision has not gained general acceptance, and in 1994 Christidis and Boles retained Campephagidae and Oriolidae as separate families pending further study. Sibley and Monroe also placed the genus Tephrodornis in the Corvidae, subfamily Malaconotidae, and tribe Vangini (helmet-shrikes). This radical rearrangement requires further investigation.
While the genus Chlamydochaera is retained within the Campephagidae, it has the distinctive syrinx morphology of true thrushes (formerly Turdidae) and muscicapine flycatchers (now united in the subfamily Muscicapinae), while DNADNA hybridization studies also suggest a turdine relationship. Storrs Olson in 1987 described skeletal features that confirm the proper placement of Chlamydochaera in the Muscicapidae.
Physical characteristics
Cuckoo-shrikes are small- to medium-sized birds. The bill is broad at the base, notched and slightly hooked, and rictal bristles are well developed. The wings are rather long and pointed, and the tail is moderately long, rounded or graduated. In most genera the back and rump feathers have very stiff shafts and soft tips, and are partially erectile. These spine-like feathers are easily shed and may act as a means of defense.
The minivets are a distinctive group. Most species have brilliantly colored plumage; males are striking red and black, and females are yellow or orange and black or gray. Most other cuckoo-shrikes are less brightly colored, and the female is often a paler, washed-out version of the male. Male flycatcher-shrikes and trillers are typically black and white, while females have the black replaced by gray or brown; female trillers are often barred below. Most Coracina species (often called gray-birds) are gray or gray and white.
In four Campephaga species, males are glossy black with brightly colored gape wattles, while females are olive-yellow and white, most with strong blackish barring. The other two species are sometimes separated into a different genus (Lobotos) in view of their predominantly green, yellow, and orange plumage, prominent facial wattles, and lack of strong sexual dimorphism.
Distribution
The family is confined to the Old World, from Africa through south and Southeast Asia to Australasia and the western Pacific islands. The genus Campephaga is endemic to Africa, where four endemic Coracina species also occur, while the western Indian Ocean islands of Madagascar, Mauritius, and Reunion each have one endemic Coracina species. The remaining 34 Coracina species are distributed through the Oriental and Australasian regions. Twenty-four species occur only in Australasia, where several species have very restricted island distributions.
The ground cuckoo-shrike (Pteropodocys maxima) is endemic to Australia. Of the other monospecific genera, the golden cuckoo-shrike (Campochaera sloetii) is endemic to New Guinea, and the black-breasted triller (Chlamydochaera jeffreyi) to Borneo. The genus Lalage is predominantly Australasian in distribution. Only three of its nine species occur in the Oriental region, while two species inhabit Pacific islands east of Western Samoa.
The remaining three genera (Hemipus, Tephrodornis, and Pericrocotus) are predominantly birds of southern and Southeast Asia. The 11 minivet species are widely distributed in southern Asia. The rosy minivet (Pericrocotus roseus) and the long-tailed minivet (Pericrocotus ethologus) occur as far west as eastern Afghanistan, and the ashy minivet (Pericrocotus divaricatus) ranges east to eastern Siberia and Japan.
Habitat
All species except the ground cuckoo-shrike are predominantly or exclusively arboreal, and many are found mainly in the canopy of tall trees. Habitats include the interior and edge of forest (swampy, humid, or dry), woodland, savanna, and scrub. Some species, such as the golden cuckoo-shrike, and the wattled cuckoo-shrikes (Campephaga lobata and oriolina) of Africa, are restricted to the forest interior, but many are more typical of forest edge, secondary growth, riparian or gallery forest, gardens, or coastal vegetation (including mangroves).
Most Campephaga species inhabit forest and woodland areas, but the black cuckoo-shrike (Campephaga flava) also frequents acacia savanna, semi-arid bushland, scrub, and exotic plantations. Coracina species inhabit many forest types, as well as savanna, woodland, scrub, farmlands, gardens, and plantations, as do the trillers and the flycatcher-shrikes. Minivets are predominantly birds of the treetops in forest, woodland, urban areas, and sometimes mangroves.
Behavior
Most species are seen singly, in pairs, or in family groups. Mixed-species bird parties of forest or woodland often contain one or more species from this family. In the nonbreeding season, many species, especially the minivets, associate in monospecific parties or flocks, and in Australia the yellow-eyed cuckoo-shrike (Coracina lineata) roosts communally.
Most cuckoo-shrikes tend to be unobtrusive and quite silent, although many have loud calls. These whistles or rather raucous squawks are not uttered frequently. However, flocks of minivets, with their bright colors and musical contact calls, are much more obvious. The cicadabird (Coracina tenuirostris) has a cicada-like call. Several species have male-female duets.
Some cuckoo-shrikes have a habit of perching motionless on a branch, often in an upright stance and sometimes for long periods. The larger species have the habit of shuffling or refolding their wings on alighting.
Many species, especially those of forested regions, are sedentary. However, other species, especially in Africa and Australia, show local or limited seasonal movements. Three minivet species of central/eastern Asia are long-distance migrants, wintering south to Southeast Asia. The ashy minivet reaches the Philippines.
Feeding ecology and diet
Food is predominantly insects and other arthropods, and many species take caterpillars, including hairy ones. Many species also eat fruit, while some take seeds and other vegetable matter. The black-breasted triller is apparently entirely frugivorous, while the varied triller (Lalage leucomela) and the yellow-eyed cuckoo-shrike are particularly attracted to figs. Minivets eat predominantly insects, buds, and berries.
Most species take insect prey by gleaning in the foliage of trees, bushes, and creepers, while some also search trunks and branches. Many species also make aerial flycatching sallies, while some occasionally take prey from the ground. The ground cuckoo-shrike feeds mainly on the ground on large insects such as grasshoppers, which it runs to catch.
Reproductive biology
Monogamy is prevalent, and some species are thought to be permanently territorial. The breeding and breeding seasons of many species are poorly known or undescribed. Most species nest solitarily but the white-winged triller (Lalage sueurii) often nests in loose colonies and the ground cuckoo-shrike also nests communally. Males of some of the larger cuckoo-shrike species have a courtship display in which the bird lifts each wing alternately, calling strongly while doing so.
The nest is a small, shallow cup of fine twigs, roots, bark, grasses, lichens, or moss, often bound together and sometimes lined with spider webs. It is usually placed on a fork or horizontal branch high in a tree and is difficult to see from below. In many species both sexes build the nest, but in the genera Campephaga and Pericrocotus nest-building is done chiefly by the female, assisted by the male.
The clutch is one to five eggs, usually two or three. In many species only the female incubates; in others both sexes share incubation duties. The incubation period varies from 14 to 25 days, and in many species is three weeks or more. The nestling period is of similar length (13–24 days). Both sexes care for the young. Most species for which information is available breed during or just after the rains.
Conservation status
Only four species are considered threatened. The Reunion cuckoo-shrike (Coracina newtoni) is Endangered. In 2000 it had a population of 120 pairs and a very small range of 6.2 mi2 (16 km2) in increasingly degraded forest habitat. Of the three Vulnerable species, the Mauritius cuckoo-shrike (Coracina typica) has a very small range. However, it has responded well to rehabilitation of native ecosystems, and its small population is increasing. The white-winged cuckoo-shrike (Coracina ostenta) of the Philippines is declining through destruction of its forest habitat.
Nine species are Near Threatened and six of these occur only in Indonesia or the Philippines, where forest destruction has been severe.
Detailed information is lacking on the current status of most species, but many have suffered from habitat loss. A few species have adapted to modified or degraded habitats. In New Guinea, the white-bellied cuckoo-shrike (Coracina papuensis) has invaded some urban areas, where it is locally abundant.
Significance to humans
Although some cuckoo-shrikes are brightly colored and many are vocal, almost all are relatively unobtrusive and often overlooked by humans. They have little or no significance in either a cultural or agricultural context.
Species accounts
Western wattled cuckoo-shrikeMauritius cuckoo-shrike
Blue cuckoo-shrike
Red-shouldered cuckoo-shrike
Golden cuckoo-shrike
Varied triller
Fiery minivet
Black-winged flycatcher-shrike
Resources
Books:Ali, S., and S.D. Ripley. Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan. Compact ed. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1983.
Christidis, L., and W.E. Boles. The Taxonomy and Species of Birds of Australia and Its Territories. Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union Monograph 2. Hawthorn East: RAOU, 1994.
Keith, S., E.K. Urban, and C.H. Fry, eds. The Birds of Africa. Vol. 4. London: Academic Press, 1992.
Sibley, C.G., and B.L. Monroe. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1990.
Stattersfield, A.J., and D.R. Capper, eds. Threatened Birds of the World: The Official Source For Birds on the IUCN Red List. Cambridge: BirdLife International, 2000.
Periodicals:Olson, S.L. "More on the Affinities of the Black-Collared Thrush of Borneo (Chlamydochaera jefferyi)." Journal of Ornithology 128 (1987): 246–248.
Ripley, S.D. "Notes on the Genus Coracina." Auk 58 (1941): 381–395.
Voous, K.H., and J.G. van Marle. "The Distributional History of Coracina in the Indo-Australian Archipelago." Bijdragen Tot De Dierkunde 28 (1949): 513–529.
[Article by: Barry Taylor, PhD]
