What are the features of the Indian cuckoo?

            The Indian cuckoo is a medium-sized bird found in forests and open woodlands. Its lower parts are grey in colour, while the upper parts show broad black bars throughout. The tail is also barred, but the tip is white and is preceded by a broader black band. The young birds have a dark face, but the top of their head and chin are contrastingly white in colour.



            The major diet of these birds includes hairy caterpillars and other insects. They are usually found on top of the upper leaf cover of trees, where they search for insects to prey upon. They may catch flying insects in the air, during which they may fly to lower heights too.



            One notable habit of these birds is to leave their eggs for some other bird to rise. They are therefore, called brood parasites. They’ll go to the nest of some other bird to lay their single egg. But before that, they will eat one egg from the host’s nest. The poor host bird will look after the cuckoo egg as its own.



            In India, drongos and crows are the common victims of the cuckoos’ brood parasitism. The Indian cuckoo is very common in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Russia and Sri Lanka. 




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