Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Cuculiformes |
Family: | Cuculidae |
Genus: | Coccyzus |
Species: | C. longirostris |
Binomial name | |
Coccyzus longirostris (Hermann, 1783) | |
Synonyms | |
Saurothera longirostris [2] |
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo (Coccyzus longirostris) is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola that is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. [3] [4]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo and three other lizard cuckoos were once considered a single species. Individually, they were previously placed in the genus Saurothera that was later merged into the current Coccyzus, and they are considered a superspecies. [2] All four of them are endemic to islands in the Caribbean. The Hispaniolan species has two subspecies: the nominate C. l. longirostris and C. l. petersi. [3]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo is 41 to 46 cm (16 to 18 in) long, about half of which is the tail. Males weigh about 83 to 99 g (2.9 to 3.5 oz) and females about 92 to 128 g (3.2 to 4.5 oz). Both subspecies have a long straight bill with a black maxilla and a paler mandible. The sexes within a subspecies have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have entirely gray upperparts. Their wings are chestnut with a rufous patch. Their throat is rufous, the breast pale gray, and the belly rufous. Their tail is black, and the underside of the feathers have large white tips. Their eye is surrounded by bare red skin. Juveniles have brownish gray upperparts, a whitish throat, and a narrower brown tail with buff tips. The subspecies C. l. petersi is paler overall than the nominate, and has a whitish throat. [5]
The nominate subspecies of Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo is found on the main island of Hispaniola and the offshore islands of Tortuga and Saona. C. l. petersi is found only on Gonâve Island off western Haiti. The species inhabits tropical deciduous and evergreen forests, more open woodland, thickets, mountain slopes with bushes, plantations, and gardens. In elevation, it ranges from sea level to 2,200 m (7,200 ft). [5]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo is a year-round resident throughout the island. [5]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo usually forages from the middle to upper levels of the forest, though it also hunts near the ground. It hunts by walking along and among branches. Its diet includes lizards, small snakes, and many types of adult and larval insects. It sometimes joins mixed-species feeding flocks. [5]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo's core breeding season is March to June. It makes a flat platform nest of leaves placed on a stump or in a tree. The clutch size is two or three eggs. No other details of its breeding phenology are known. [5]
The Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo's principal call is "[r]attling, grating...in descending series". It also makes calls described as "a harsh 'tchk', a click, and a 'tick cwuh-h-h'." [5]
The IUCN has assessed the Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo as being of Least Concern, though its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. [1] It is generally widespread, but locally scarce in parts of Haiti. In rural areas, it is hunted as a traditional medicine digestive aid. [5]
The Puerto Rican lizard cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Puerto Rico.
The bay-breasted cuckoo is an Endangered species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to the Dominican Republic on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola; it is possibly extirpated in Haiti.
The Hispaniolan mango is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae. It is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola.
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The Hispaniolan emerald is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola, which is shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
The Hispaniolan nightjar is a nightjar species endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, which is shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
The pearly-breasted cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela, and possibly Colombia and Panama.
The Cocos cuckoo is a Vulnerable species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Cocos Island, an island in the Pacific Ocean which is part of Costa Rica.
The grey-capped cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, as a vagrant on Bonaire and in the Galápagos Islands, and possibly in Panama.
The chestnut-bellied cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Jamaica.
The rufous-vented ground cuckoo is a Vulnerable species of cuckoo in the tribe Neomorphini of subfamily Crotophaginae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru.
The red-billed ground cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the tribe Neomorphini of subfamily Crotophaginae. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Peru, and possibly Ecuador.
The great lizard cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is found in the Bahamas and Cuba, as well as Puerto Rico.
The Jamaican lizard cuckoo is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Jamaica.
The rufous-sided crake is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in every mainland South American country except Chile.
The thick-billed miner is a species of bird in the subfamily Sclerurinae, the leaftossers and miners, of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is endemic to Peru.
The green-tailed warbler, also known as the green-tailed ground-tanager, is a species of bird of the family Phaenicophilidae, the Hispaniolan tanagers. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola which is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The grey-crowned tanager or grey-crowned palm-tanager is a Near Threatened species of bird in the family Phaenicophilidae, the Hispaniolan tanagers. It is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in both the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
The grey-throated leaftosser is a Near Threatened species of bird in the subfamily Sclerurinae, the leaftossers and miners, of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela.
The Antillean piculet is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola that is shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti.