The Jacobin cuckoo, also pied cuckoo or pied crested cuckoo, is a member of the cuckoo order of birds that is found in Africa and Asia. It is partially migratory and in India, it has been considered a harbinger of the monsoon rains due to the timing of its arrival. It has been associated with a bird in Indian mythology and poetry, known as the chātaka represented as a bird with a beak on its head that waits for rains to quench its thirst.
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia
Typical Environment
The Jacobin cuckoo occurs widely across sub-Saharan Africa and extends through the Arabian Peninsula to the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka. Many birds migrate seasonally, with African populations partly resident and Indian populations arriving with the southwest monsoon. It favors open woodland, thorn scrub, savanna edges, hedgerows, and cultivated landscapes. It is often seen perched conspicuously on shrubs and trees in semi-open country.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Also called the pied cuckoo or pied crested cuckoo, it is famed across India as a harbinger of the monsoon, arriving just before the rains. It is a brood parasite, laying its eggs in the nests of other birds such as babblers and bulbuls. Its striking black-and-white plumage and prominent crest make it easy to pick out in open country.
In flight, the white wing patches and tail edges are prominent
Black-phase Jacobin cuckoo in KwaZulu-Natal
![C. j. serratus is the largest race and an intra-African migrant. It has a grey tone to the underpart plumage, and variable streaking on the throat.[20]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Pied_Cuckoo_%28Clamator_jacobinus%29_immature_..._%2852727808984%29.jpg/1280px-Pied_Cuckoo_%28Clamator_jacobinus%29_immature_..._%2852727808984%29.jpg)
C. j. serratus is the largest race and an intra-African migrant. It has a grey tone to the underpart plumage, and variable streaking on the throat.[20]
In Kerala, India
Temperament
wary and semi-conspicuous in open perches
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with glides
Social Behavior
Typically solitary or in pairs outside of migration. It is an obligate brood parasite and does not build its own nest, placing eggs in the nests of host species such as babblers and bulbuls. Breeding in South Asia is synchronized with the onset of monsoon rains, matching peak food availability.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Delivers a clear, whistled series of notes, often rendered as a repeated pee-pee-pee, carrying far in open habitats. Calls increase in frequency with seasonal movements and courtship, and may include chattering notes near host nests.
