White-cheeked Turaco Menelikornis leucotis Scientific name definitions

42–43 cm; 200–315 g. Adult has forehead, neck, throat, breast , and upper­parts green; rounded crest and hindcrown glossy dark blue, with a large circular white loral patch , a small black band (often very faint) extending under eye from gape to ear coverts, and a prominent but variable crescentic white patch on side of neck. Lower back, folded wings , and tail grayish blue, rump grey-blue; primaries and outer secondaries crimson; thighs and belly dull blackish; eye brown, with bright red wattled orbital ring; bill red, with greenish base around nostrils largely concealed by feathers; legs and feet black. Immature rather similar to adult. Subspecies donald­soni has hindcrown and crest dull crimson. Nominate birds in Eritrea and areas west of the Rift Valley have upper back and wing coverts bluer and large, conspicuous neck patches, while many birds east of the Rift are brighter and greener, with less white on sides of neck.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Previously thought to be closely related to Hartlaub's Turaco (Tauraco hartlaubi), but this not supported in phylogenetic study (1 Veron, G., and B. J. Winney (2000). Phylogenetic relationships within the turacos (Musophagidae). Ibis 142(3): 446–456. Close ). Subspecies donaldsoni said to be “found east of the Rift Valley in the… Bale mountains, where… at least it is found alongside nominate White-cheeked Turaco, supporting the view for its specific separation” (2 Ash, J. S. and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: an Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Its elongated feathers of hindcrown are dull reddish-brown, rather than the dull blackish-blue of nominate, on which this color starts earlier on the mid-crown so that most of crown looks indigo, rather than green and then maroon (score 3); otherwise very similar. Clarification needed as to whether the two co-occur or are parapatric in Bale Mts. A score of 3 for parapatry and 3 for crown color would mean that any small vocal difference would be sufficient to establish the split. Nominate race has hybridized in the wild with Prince Ruspoli's Turaco (Menelikornis ruspolii) (3 Lernould, J.M. and Seitre, R. (2002). [First record of wild hybrids between White-cheeked Turaco Tauraco l. leucotis and Prince Ruspoli’s Turaco T. ruspolii]. Alauda 70: 247–251. In French with English summary. Close ). Two subspecies recognized.

• White-cheeked x Prince Ruspoli's Turaco (hybrid) Menelikornis leucotis x ruspolii

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Typically occurs in montane Podocarpus and juniper  (Juniperus) forest from 2200 m to 3200 m, but can be found as low as 850 m in the Omo Valley; also in tall gallery trees and thick bush along watercourses. In Eritrea, occurs in almost any type of dense woodland, except acacia, ranging down to 900 m.

Largely sedentary throughout its range.

Primarily fruits and berries of Podocarpus and juniper trees .

Main call a series of raucous cawing notes with a rhythmic delivery unlike congeners—typically two or three long introductory notes followed by 2–5 fast short ones, then 10–12 harsher notes at a steady pace, e.g. go..gwOh..gwOh..gogogogo.gro.groh..groh..groh..groh..groh..groh... Also a high-pitched rattling alarm.

Breeds in April in Eritrea, and in June–November in Ethiopia. Nest is a rather thick platform of dry twigs, very loosely constructed, with a slight depression at top, placed some 7–10 m above ground. Lays 2 off-white eggs; incubation 22–23 days, by both sexes. Newly hatched chicks are covered in black down; at 18–19 days they begin to crawl about in branches around nest, and are able to fly at 25–26 days.

Not globally threatened. CITES II. Fairly common in many areas of Podocarpus and juniper forest in Ethiopian Highlands above 2400 m. No known threats at present, but any destruction of this species' forest habitats could lead to serious local depletion of its numbers.