Red-chested Cuckoo
A species of Typical Cuckoos Scientific name : Cuculus solitarius Genus : Typical Cuckoos
Red-chested Cuckoo, A species of Typical Cuckoos
Botanical name: Cuculus solitarius
Genus: Typical Cuckoos
Content
Description General Info
Description
The red-chested cuckoo is a medium-size cuckoo about 31 cm (12.2 in) in length. The male has slate-grey upper parts, pale grey throat and sides of head and dark grey tail tipped with white. The breast is rufous or cinnamon, often with barring, and the belly is creamy-white or pale buff. The female is similar but the colour of the breast is duller and with variable amounts of barring. 
Size
31 cm
Colors
Brown
Black
Gray
White
Feeding Habits
Red-chested Cuckoo primarily feeds on insects such as caterpillars and spiders, as well as centipedes, millipedes, slugs, snails, and occasionally small vertebrates and berries, showcasing a varied diet. Its foraging technique is tailored to hunting these prey items, with unique adaptations for consuming particularly hairy caterpillars.
Habitat
Red-chested Cuckoo predominately inhabits various woodland types, including forests, open and riparian woodlands, thorn scrub, and montane regions up to an elevation of 3000 m. The species has a preference for wetter areas, typically found in regions with over 500 mm of yearly rainfall. While red-chested Cuckoo is more associated with dense forests in western, central, and southern Africa, it transitions to favoring open woodland habitats in eastern Africa, particularly in areas above 1000 m elevation. Although commonly observed alone, red-chested Cuckoo is a widespread species across broad geographical regions of sub-Saharan Africa.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Behavior
It is usually solitary and highly vocal and lives on forests and plantations. It eats insects including hairy caterpillars, spiders, centipedes, millipedes, slugs, snails, small vertebrates and berries. The red-chested cuckoo takes on more than a single mate (it is polygamous). The nesting habit of red-chested cuckoo is to use the nest of another bird (brood parasitism). About fifteen different species of small bird are parasitised but the most common hosts are the Cape robin-chat (Cossypha caffra), the Cape wagtail (Motacilla capensis) and the white-throated robin-chat (Cossypha humeralis). The surrogate family then raise the chick. The bird lays eggs which are brown in colour and number between 20 eggs per season in different nests.Like other Cuckoos, the Red-Chested Cuckoo lays its eggs in other birds’ nests, leaving the parasitized birds to care for the Cuckoo chicks, which they do, believing it is their own offspring. This particular species lays about 20 eggs per season in various nests of other birds.
Distribution Area
It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, DRC, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. In Southern Africa it is a common breeding migrant, found throughout the area except for the drier west. The preferred habitats for the red-chested cuckoo are woodlands. The red-chested cuckoo is normally seen by itself rather than in the company of birds of the same species.
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Cuckoos and Relatives Family
Cuckoos Genus
Typical Cuckoos Species
Red-chested Cuckoo 
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