About Chrysococcyx maculatus (Gmelin, 1788)
The Asian emerald cuckoo (Chrysococcyx maculatus (Gmelin, 1788)) reaches an adult length of about 18 cm (7 in). Adult males have iridescent dark green on the head, upper body, and upper breast, a white lower breast, and a green-barred belly. Bare skin surrounding the eye is orange, and the beak is orange/yellow with a black tip. Adult females have coppery-green upper parts, a rusty brown crown and nape, and green-barred underparts. Both sexes display a white band on the underwing while in flight. The underparts of juvenile males do not have the white lower breast seen in adult males, and are more heavily barred. Its vocalizations include a "chweek" call given during flight, along with various whistled twitters. This species has a breeding range that stretches from the Himalayas eastward to Myanmar, China, and northern Thailand. Further south, it occurs as a vagrant or migrant in northern India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Sumatra, and has not been recorded breeding in these areas. It typically inhabits forests and woodland margins. The Asian emerald cuckoo forages mostly in the upper canopy, where it feeds on insects and other small invertebrates including ants, caterpillars, and bugs. It is a brood parasite: females lay their eggs in the nests of other bird species, such as the crimson sunbird (Aethopyga siparaja) and the little spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra).
