Black-throated coucal facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Black-throated coucal |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Centropus
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| Species: |
leucogaster
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The black-throated coucal (Centropus leucogaster) is a special type of cuckoo bird. It belongs to the Cuculidae family. You can find this bird in West Africa, living in thick forests and grassy, swampy areas. Sometimes, a similar bird found in central Africa is called Neumann's coucal.
What Does It Look Like?
The black-throated coucal is the biggest bird in its group, called Centropus. It can grow to be about 46 to 58 centimeters (18 to 23 inches) long. Both male and female birds look very similar.
Adult coucals have a black head, neck, and upper chest that shines with a violet-blue color. Their wings are a reddish-brown, and their back is black with white stripes. Their tail is black, with lighter colors at the bottom of the feathers. The lower part of their chest and their belly are white. Their upper legs and sides have a reddish tint.
Young coucals look a bit like the adults. However, they have stripes and streaks of a light yellowish-brown color. They also don't have the shiny look on their head that adult birds do.
Where Does It Live?
The black-throated coucal lives in western Africa. You can find it in countries like Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
These birds like to live in specific places. They prefer the edges of secondary forest (forests that have grown back after being cut down). They also live in open areas, thick bushes, rough grasslands, and the edges of marshes. Sometimes, they are found in savannahs or along rivers where there are strips of gallery forest (forests that grow along rivers). They usually don't live in places higher than 1,000 meters (about 3,280 feet) above sea level.
How Does It Live?
The black-throated coucal is a shy bird. It likes to stay hidden in thick bushes and doesn't often come out into the open. It looks for food on or close to the ground. Its diet mainly includes insects, spiders, and small frogs.
When it's time to build a nest, the coucal makes a ball shape out of dried grasses and leaves. It lines the inside with fresh green leaves. The nest is usually about 30 centimeters (12 inches) across. They build their nests close to the ground, often in a bush or a clump of grass.
The female coucal lays two white eggs. It is thought that the male bird is the one who sits on the eggs to keep them warm until they hatch. However, scientists haven't studied the nesting habits of this bird very much, so there's still a lot to learn!
