Call of the Sumatran Ground-cuckoo
The Rare Sumatran Cuckoo Has Provided a Voice Recording
The recorded call of the Sumatran Cuckoo will help conservationists protect the bird: now we can confirm its presence without a sighting.
The Sumatran Ground-cuckoo, often simply called the Sumatran Cuckoo (Carpococcyx viridis) is believed to be extremely rare. The bird is listed as critically endangered in the IUCN Red List - the estimated population in Sumatra, the only known habitat of the cuckoo, is between 50 and 249 birds. The Sumatran Ground-cuckoo may not be as rare as we think, however – this bird is so elusive that it’s been definitively identified less than a dozen times. Most recently, a bird was photographed in 1997, and in 2006 a camera trap caught a good image of a Sumatran Cuckoo as it went past the lens. Now, a bird accidentally caught in a hunters trap has provided the first recording of the cuckoo’s distinctive call.
The recording of the cuckoo’s call is treasured by conservationists because now people will be able to identify the elusive bird’s presence by its call even if they don’t see it. The information can be used to generate more accurate information about the population and range of Sumatran Ground-cuckoos, and to identify critical habitat for the bird.
Want to hear the call of the Sumatran Ground-cuckoo?
Source:
Birdlife South Africa. “Cuckoo Calls Forth.”
Articles on other birds listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List:
Endangered Albatross (two species are listed as critical: the Amsterdam Albatross and the Chatham Albatross)
