The black coucal (''Centropus grillii'') is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It has a wide distribution in Africa south of the Sahara.

Description

The male black coucal is in length while the female is , otherwise they are similar in appearance. In breeding plumage the head, body and tail are black, apart from some buff barring on the rump, and the wings are rufous. Outside the breeding season, the upper parts are dark brown with rufous barring. The eyes are brown and the beak and legs are black. Juveniles are rufous with various dark and light barring and streaking.

Distribution and habitat

It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso,

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

, Cameroon, Central African Republic,

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...

Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...

, DRC,

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

Eswatini Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...

, Ethiopia, Gabon,

Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

, Ghana,

Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya,

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria,

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa,

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It is resident in some locations and migrant in others. Its habitat is marshes, savannah, grassland, bracken, undergrowth, and clearings in woodland, and occasionally reeds and papyrus. It usually occurs below but occasionally up to .

Ecology

The species has the role of sexes reversed with the males tending the nest while females are polyandrous and maintain territories. Studies on the hormonal system show that

progesterone Progesterone (P4) is an endogenous steroid and progestogen sex hormone involved in the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and embryogenesis of humans and other species. It belongs to a group of steroid hormones called the progestogens and is the m ...

is responsible for controlling the aggressiveness of females.Goymann, W., Wittenzellner, A., Schwabl, I., & Makomba, M. (2008, May 7). Progesterone modulates aggression in sex-role reversed female African black coucals. Proceedings: Biological Sciences, 275(1638):1053-1060.

Status

The black coucal is a generally uncommon bird with a very wide range. No particular threats have been identified and the population is believed to be steady, so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of " least concern".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q864806 black coucal Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa black coucal Taxonomy articles created by Polbot