Bird Watch: Jacobin cuckoo, a bird that heralds the arrival of rains

This bird is a member of the cuckoo order of birds that are found in Asia and Africa. While the male and female look alike, the Jacobin cuckoo’s identification marks are a pied, black crest and a white wing patch. A summer visitor, this cuckoo is found in areas with scrubs and gardens or forests. Its call is a ringing ‘kiuu, kiuu’ sound.

Sighting a Jacobin cuckoo is only possible in summers, especially during rains. It is also said that the bird, which can survive without drinking water for many days, only drinks rainwater to quench its thirst.

In ISCR, it is easy to spot a Jacobin cuckoo in areas near Morni Hills. I found an opportunity to capture this bird in my camera from my rooftop a few days back. It was sitting on a high branch of a tree near my house.

Its diet primarily consists of insects, grasshoppers, termites, land snails, fruits and berries. The Jacobin cuckoo breed in the June-August period. They do not build nests and choose to lay eggs in the nests of babblers, where the host birds then raise their hatchlings.