About Corythaixoides leucogaster (Ruppell, 1842)
This species, the white-bellied go-away bird, averages 51 cm (20 inches) in length. A long, pointed grey and black tail with a white median band is one of its characteristic features. It also has a white under-wing patch that is visible when the bird is in flight. Adult birds have a grey head, which leads into a dark grey to blackish pointed crest that measures approximately 6 cm long. The belly and under-tail coverts are white, which gives the bird the first part of its common name "white-bellied". Male birds have a black bill, while female birds have a pea-green bill that becomes yellowish during the breeding season. Females also tend to be larger than males: females weigh 225 g to 250 g, while males weigh 170 g to 225 g. Juvenile birds are similar in appearance to adults, but their plumage is more brown, especially on the wing-coverts. Its typical calls are a nasal haa-haa-haa that sounds like a sheep bleating, and a single or repeated gwa (or g'away). This distinctive call gives the bird the second part of its common name "go-away". It flies from tree to tree in loose, straggling groups, calling loudly as it moves. The species inhabits hot acacia-steppe, savanna, and woodland areas. It avoids deep forest, and can be found at elevations ranging from sea level up to 2000 m. Go-away birds have restricted local ranges due to water availability, but this species occurs across a large area in and around the Horn of Africa. It has been recorded in Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, northern and eastern Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, and northeastern Uganda, and ranges southwards into the eastern plateau of Tanzania.
