Cuckoos (Cuculidae)
Blue-headed Coucal (Centropus monachus) - HBW 4, p. 591
French: Coucal à nuque bleu
German: Mönchskuckuck
Spanish: Cucal Monje
Taxonomy: Centropus monachus Rüppell, 1837, Kulla, northern Ethiopia.
Possible intermediates occur between present species and C. cupreicaudus, and their vocalizations are similar; on occasion treated as conspecific. Several additional races described appear invalid: form “heuglini” with a blue (not violet) head, found along large permanent swamps in Sudan, appears to represent an immature plumage of fischeri; a separate race, occidentalis, sometimes recognized for birds of Gabon, but probably indistinct from fischeri; birds from Shaba in SW Zaire, described as smaller race verheyeni, in fact overlap in size with
Possible intermediates occur between present species and C. cupreicaudus, and their vocalizations are similar; on occasion treated as conspecific. Several additional races described appear invalid: form “heuglini” with a blue (not violet) head, found along large permanent swamps in Sudan, appears to represent an immature plumage of fischeri; a separate race, occidentalis, sometimes recognized for birds of Gabon, but probably indistinct from fischeri; birds from Shaba in SW Zaire, described as smaller race verheyeni, in fact overlap in size with fischeri. Two subspecies recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution:
- fischeri Reichenow, 1887 - Ivory Coast and Ghana through S Nigeria, S Cameroon, Gabon, N Angola and Zaire to S Sudan, NW Tanzania and highlands of Ethiopia and W Kenya.
- monachus Rüppell, 1837 - Ethiopia to C Kenya.
- Least Concern Enlarge map
-
A lateral and a dorsal view of a bird Locality Hawassa, Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia (ssp fischeri)
Ron Hoff 1 December 2007 5 years ago 58 sec 4.1 -
A bird resting on a cane Locality Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia (ssp fischeri)
Josep del Hoyo 18 December 2005 6 years ago 42 sec 3.8 -
perched out, preening in the early morning Locality Kakum National Park, Central Region, Ghana (ssp fischeri)
Martin Kennewell 13 December 2010 1 year ago 34 sec 3.3 -
A bird on the ground, foraging Locality Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia (ssp fischeri)
Josep del Hoyo 18 December 2005 6 years ago 30 sec 2.6 -
A bird on a wall and flying away Locality Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia (ssp fischeri)
Josep del Hoyo 18 December 2005 6 years ago 29 sec 2.5 -
A bird calling from a telegraph post at dawn, then flying away Locality Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia (ssp fischeri)
Keith Blomerley 12 April 2002 5 years ago 17 sec 2.5
-
A bird perched.
Locality Bushara Island, Lake Bunyonyi, Uganda
Tadeusz Rosinski 3 March 2011 26 weeks ago 4.4 -
On a bush
Locality St Lucia, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu Natal Province, South Africa
Guy Poisson 7 November 2012 22 weeks ago 4 -
A bird resting on a cane
Locality Mount Kupe, Cameroon
Krzysztof Blachowiak 18 February 2012 46 weeks ago 4 -
A young perched.
Locality Bushara Island, Lake Bunyonyi, Uganda
Tadeusz Rosinski 3 March 2011 26 weeks ago 3.8 -
A resting bird
Locality Mount Kupe, Cameroon
Tadeusz Stawarczyk 18 February 2012 49 weeks ago 3.8 -
Perched on edge of papyrus swamp.
Locality Kibungo, East Province, Rwanda
Jason Anderson 11 October 2009 2 years ago 3.4
-
A bird calling once. Locality Awassa Lake, SNNPR Region, Ethiopia
(ssp fischeri)
Keith Blomerley 12 April 2002 16 weeks ago 4
Email this page