Hierococcyx bocki
The Dark Hawk-Cuckoo (Hierococcyx bocki) is a medium-sized, highly cryptic member of the cuckoo family, renowned for its challenging identification and brood parasitic lifestyle. Measuring approximately 28-32 cm in length, it exhibits greyish-brown upperparts, a paler grey head and nape, often with faint streaking, and a distinctive yellow eye-ring that serves as a key field mark for adults. Its underparts are whitish, adorned with broad rufous-brown barring on the flanks and belly, becoming ...
Primarily inhabiting broadleaf evergreen and deciduous forests, the Dark Hawk-Cuckoo is found in hill and montane regions, typically at elevations ranging from 300 to 2,000 meters.
Strictly insectivorous, the Dark Hawk-Cuckoo feeds on a wide variety of insects, including hairy caterpillars, beetles, and other arthropods, which it gleans from tree foliage.
Typically a solitary and highly secretive bird, the Dark Hawk-Cuckoo is diurnal, spending most of its time hidden within the dense canopy or sub-canopy and often detected solely by its distinctive vocalizations. It forages primarily in trees, meticulously gleaning insects and larvae from foliage....
The Dark Hawk-Cuckoo is a resident species primarily found across Southeast Asia, with its breeding range extending from extreme southern Myanmar (Tenasserim) and southwestern Thailand, through Peninsular Malaysia, and onto the Greater Sunda Islands. Its distribution encompasses the major Indones...
Least Concern
- The 'hawk-cuckoo' name refers to its remarkable resemblance to small accipitrine hawks, an adaptation believed to deter potential predators or confuse host species. - Unlike most birds, Dark Hawk-Cuckoos are obligate brood parasites, meaning they lay their eggs in the nests of other bird specie...