Greater Coucal

Centropus sinensis (Stephens, 1815)

≈48 cmLength281 gWeight

It is a large, crow-like cuckoo with a black body, chestnut-brown back and wings and a long tail, often clambering through vegetation.

Busiest months: February · Most records: India, Thailand, China

Looks like Lesser Coucal

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Head black; upper back and underparts black with a purple metallic gloss
Back and wings chestnut-brown
Eyes ruby-red
Long tail; body length about 48 cm

Male, female and young

Sexes similar in plumage, but the female is slightly larger; juveniles are duller black, with spots on the crown and pale barring on the underparts and tail.

Voice

A low, booming “coop-coop-coop”, repeated with variations.

Similar species

Lesser Coucal

Lesser Coucal has a shorter, blunter bill, a shorter tail, dark eyes, chestnut underwing lining and a green-bronze metallic gloss on the tail.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: February · Most records: India, Thailand, China

Greater Coucal has been recorded at 1,134 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 18 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

GKVK CampusIndia14,354 records
Bharatpur – Keoladeo Ghana NPIndia3,659 records
Kanha NP – Mukki ZoneIndia3,533 records

More places

Mai Po Nature ReserveHong Kong (China)3,507 records
Fergusson College CampusIndia3,315 records
Saul Kere / Sowl KereIndia2,987 records
Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural HistoryIndia2,809 records
Valley SchoolIndia2,452 records
Thrissur Government Medical CollegeIndia2,366 records
IIT BombayIndia2,256 records

Countries and regions with the most records

India Thailand China Sri Lanka Malaysia Cambodia Vietnam Nepal

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The greater coucal or crow pheasant (Centropus sinensis), is a large non-parasitic member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes. A widespread resident in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, it is divided into several subspecies, some being treated as full species. They are large, crow-like with a long tail and coppery brown wings and found in a wide range of habitats from jungle to cultivation and urban gardens.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Greater Coucal?

The Greater Coucal is about ≈48 cm long and weighs around 281 g.

Where does the Greater Coucal live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: Pakistan to southeastern China, southwestern Philippines and Greater Sundas. It is most often recorded in India, Thailand and China.