Violet Cuckoo

The violet cuckoo has a blackish tail with a white tip and barred outer feathers, and a white belly with broad black, green or violet bars. Mature males also have a red eye ring. It is told from the closely related little bronze cuckoo by its reddish-violet rather than blue-violet throat patch. It occurs from north-eastern India to Southeast Asia, the Greater Sundas, Palawan and the Philippines, from the lowlands up to 1,500 m but mainly below 700 m (Wikipedia, general species account).

Southern populations are resident, while northern ones, in places such as Assam and Bangladesh, appear to be migratory. It is insectivorous but also eats fruit, creeping up and down branches to forage or flycatching on the wing. It is a brood parasite, and after mating the females become secretive while searching for nests. Hosts often chase off adult cuckoos but fail to recognise cuckoo eggs in the nest. SoIB 2023 lists it as a resident and summer migrant of forest and plantation and does not assign a priority category (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).