coucal, any of about 27 species of medium to large birds of the genus Centropus of the cuckoo family (Cuculidae). They are found from Africa and Madagascar across southern Asia to Australia and the Solomon Islands. About 30 to 90 cm (12 to 36 inches) long, coucals are loose-plumaged birds with rather stout, down-curved bills, short wings, and long, graduated tails. Weak fliers, they feed chiefly on large insects but can run down small rodents and reptiles. Three to five eggs are placed in a domed grass nest built on the ground or in a low bush.
The following are among the best-known coucals:
The black, or black-chested, coucal (C. toulou) is 33 cm (13 inches) long. All black except for brown wings, it is whitish streaked in nonbreeding plumage (the only cuckoo to have seasonal coloration change). It ranges from eastern Africa to Southeast Asia.
The great, or common, coucal (C. sinensis), called crow pheasant in India, is 48 to 56 cm (19 to 22 inches) long. It is black with brown mantle and wings. Its range is from India to southern China and Malaysia.
The pheasant coucal (C. phasianinus), or swamp pheasant, 33 cm (13 inches) long, is dark brown, finely barred with white. It occupies Australia and New Guinea.
The senegal coucal (C. senegalensis), 40 cm (16 inches) long, is brown above with black crown and white underparts. It is found in tropical Africa, as is a similar species, C. superciliosus, the white-browed coucal.