Bio Facts: Malcoha, Chestnut-breasted
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Common Name:
Chestnut-breasted Malcoha
Scientific Name:
Rhamphococcyx curvirostris
Family:
Cuculidae
Order:
Cuculiformes
Class:
Aves
Range:
Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines and Thailand
Habitat:
Subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests
Description:
Adult length: 19 in (49 cm); coloration: grey and dark green upperparts and chestnut underparts, and a large curved pale upper mandible. The male and female have similar plumage.
Life Expectancy:
Unknown
Sexual Maturity:
Unknown
Diet:
In the wild, they eat small lizards, frogs and baby birds, insects, spiders and small crabs; in the Zoo, they are fed a scientifically developed, commercially available bird of prey meat and low-iron Softbill pelleted diet, insects, pinky mice, and a variety of fruits and vegetables.
Status:
IUCN – Least Concern
Behaviors:
Unlike many cuckoos, the chestnut-breasted malkoha builds its nest and raises its own young. Breeding season varies by location, from August to December in Borneo, to January to September in Southeast Asia. A male-female pair builds a nest around 14 in (35 cm) in diameter of small branches and twigs, with a leaf-lined depression or cup around 4 in (11 cm) in diameter and 2 in (5 cm) deep. Two or three matte white eggs measuring 34 x 28 mm are laid. Both parents incubate the eggs, which usually hatch around 13 days. Young birds remain in the nest for around 11 days, during which time they are fed by both parents.
Special Interest:
The chestnut-breasted malkoha was first described from a specimen collected in western Java by English naturalist George Shaw in 1810 as Cuculus curvirostris, before the genus Phaenicophaeus was erected by English naturalist James Francis Stephens in 1815. Its species name is derived from the Latin words curvus “curved”, and rostrum “beak”. The genus name is derived from the ancient Greek phoiniko- “crimson”, and phaes “eyes” or “face”, referring to the red-faced malkoha. However, the ‘œ’ was transcribed incorrectly as ‘æ’. The group name is derived from a Sinhala word - Mal-Koha means “flower-cuckoo”.
Conservation:
This species has a very large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion. The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion. The population size has not been quantified, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion. For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern on IUCN.
The global population size has not been quantified, but the species is reported to be fairly common to common.
Jacksonville Zoo History:
Part of the Jacksonville Zoo animal collection since 2007, we have successfully bred this species.
Last Revised:
5/11
