coucal

coucal
/kooh"keuhl/, n.
any of several Old World cuckoos of the genus Centropus, having harsh-textured plumage and a long, daggerlike hind claw.
[1805-15; < F, said to be equiv. to couc(ou) CUCKOO + al(ouette) lark]

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bird
 any of about 27 species of medium to large birds of the genus Centropus of the cuckoo family (Cuculidae). They are found from Africa and Madagascar across southern Asia to Australia and the Solomon Islands. About 30 to 90 cm (12 to 36 inches) long, coucals are loose-plumaged birds with rather stout, down-curved bills, short wings, and long, graduated tails. Weak fliers, they feed chiefly on large insects but can run down small rodents and reptiles. Three to five eggs are placed in a domed grass nest built on the ground or in a low bush.

      The following are among the best-known coucals:

      The black, or black-chested, coucal (C. toulou) is 33 cm (13 inches) long. All black except for brown wings, it is whitish streaked in nonbreeding plumage (the only cuckoo to have seasonal coloration change). It ranges from eastern Africa to Southeast Asia.

      The great, or common, coucal (C. sinensis), called crow pheasant in India, is 48 to 56 cm (19 to 22 inches) long. It is black with brown mantle and wings. Its range is from India to southern China and Malaysia.

      The pheasant coucal (C. phasianinus), or swamp pheasant, 33 cm (13 inches) long, is dark brown, finely barred with white. It occupies Australia and New Guinea.

      The senegal coucal (C. senegalensis), 40 cm (16 inches) long, is brown above with black crown and white underparts. It is found in tropical Africa, as is a similar species, C. superciliosus, the white-browed coucal.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • coucal — ● coucal, coucals nom masculin (onomatopée) Coucou non parasite des régions tropicales de l Ancien Monde. coucal n. m. ORNITH Oiseau voisin des coucous, à longue queue et au chant caractéristique, fréquent en Afrique tropicale …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Coucal — Cou cal (k?? k?l), n. [Prob. native name.] (Zo[ o]l.) A large, Old World, ground cuckoo of the genus {Centropus}, of several species. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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  • coucal — /ˈkukæl/ (say koohkal), /ˈkukəl/ (say koohkuhl) noun 1. → pheasant coucal. 2. any of various long tailed birds closely related to cuckoos, genus Centropus, family Centropodidae, of Africa and southern Asia. {French} …  

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