Greater Coucal

The Greater Coucal, also widely known as the Crow Pheasant, is a large, heavy-bodied member of the cuckoo family, but unlike its parasitic relative the koel, it builds its own nest and raises its own young. Adults are glossy black overall with a purplish-blue sheen, contrasted by rich chestnut-red wings, a long black graduated tail, and striking deep red eyes.

Despite its bulk, the Greater Coucal is a somewhat clumsy, ground-loving bird, more often seen clambering through undergrowth or hopping along the ground than flying, though it can fly reasonably well over short distances when needed.

Key field marks

• Large size, glossy black body with a bluish sheen
• Rich chestnut-red wings, contrasting sharply with the black body and tail
• Long, broad, graduated black tail
• Deep red eyes; heavy, slightly downcurved black bill
• Often seen moving deliberately through low scrub or hopping on the ground

Similar species

The Asian Koel male is smaller, slimmer, entirely glossy black without chestnut wings, and has a different, more parasitic lifestyle. Crows are similarly black but lack the chestnut wing patch and have a different bill shape and posture.

Greater Coucals are found across the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka, and through Southeast Asia into southern China and parts of Indonesia. They favor scrub, grassland, forest edges, gardens, and agricultural land with dense low cover, generally avoiding open treeless areas and deep unbroken forest.

The species is non-migratory, holding permanent territories.

Voice

A deep, resonant, booming "oop-oop-oop" call, often given repeatedly and audible over long distances, one of the most distinctive sounds of South Asian scrub and garden habitats.

Feeding

Greater Coucals forage mainly on or near the ground, taking a varied diet of insects, small reptiles such as lizards and snakes, eggs and nestlings of other birds, and occasionally small mammals, making them opportunistic predators within their habitat.

Nesting and breeding

Unlike the parasitic koel, the Greater Coucal builds its own bulky, domed nest of grass and leaves, usually placed low in dense bush or thicket. Both parents share incubation and chick-rearing duties, an unusual trait among many cuckoo relatives.