Verreaux's Coua Coua verreauxi Scientific name definitions

34–38 cm; one male 98 g, female 97–101 g (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Adult green-grey above , head with pale grey dark-tipped crest, tail glossy blue with white tip ; white below ; bare skin around eye blue with no black outline and becoming pinkish behind it (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), iris dark brown to greyish brown, bill thin, black with grey base, legs and feet black (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Similar to C. cristata, but generally thinner-bodied and smaller, with longer, black-tipped crest that is often held forward, and lacks pinkish-tinged breast of cristata or orange undertail-coverts of sympatric race C. cristata pyropyga, which distinction also holds for juveniles (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Juvenile has shorter crest, cinnamon tips to wing-coverts and remiges, narrower and more pointed tail feathers with smaller white tips, greyish bill, brownish-grey irides and grey facial skin (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

SW Madagascar, mainly between R Fiherenana and R Menarandra, but recently extended N to Salary–Bekodoy Forest (4 Raselimanana, A.P., Raherilalao, M.J., Soarimalala, V., Gardner, C.J., Jasper, L.D., Schoeman, M.C. and Goodman, S.M. (2012). Un premier aperçu de la faune de vertébrés du bush épineux de Salary-Bekodoy, à l’ouest du Parc National de Mikea, Madagascar. Malagasy Nature 6: 1–23. In French with English summary. Close ); isolated records from Beloha, Cap Sainte Marie Special Reserve, Tsiombe and Mandrare Basin (5 Safford, R.J. and Hawkins, A.F.A. eds. (2013). The Birds of Africa. Vol. 8: The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London. Close ).

Subarid thorn scrub, especially Euphorbia and Didierea brush, on sandy or calcareous soil. Sea-level to 225 m (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Few data. Insects and small vertebrates (e.g. lizards), also fruit and seeds of Cassia meridionalis (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Stomach contents of one contained seven large seeds and remains of medium to large insects, while that of another held Orthoptera alone (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). An arboreal forager, whereas sympatric C. cristata mainly feeds in trees and bushes, but present species also shares habitat with C. cursor, C. ruficeps and C. gigas, all of which are terrestrial; their interactions and ecological separation remain to be studied (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Usually occurs alone or in pairs, with family parties of up to four observed post-breeding (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Call “coy coy coy”, repeated, like that of C. cristata but briefer, more shrill and rasping (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); also loud “quark quark” followed by soft “coo coo”, loud call at dusk “trew-ee trew-ee trew-ee” then soft “crow crow crow”.

Very poorly known. Season apparently lasts Oct–Apr, given active nests recorded in Oct, Jan and Apr (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Probably monogamous (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Nest a platform or shallow bowl of sticks (c. 15 cm across), sometimes with lining of lichens, c. 1·5–4 m above ground in spiny trees such as Euphorbia (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Eggs undescribed and no information concerning incubation, but both adults provision young (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Range of present species is complementary to that of C. cristata, indicating a recent separation by speciation from it, or exclusion by interspecific competition, or both; the habitat occupied by present species is drier than that of C. cristata. Density of present species in intact habitat reaches 10–28 birds/km², but no estimates of total population (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Principally threatened by wood-cutting for charcoal production, which is widespread, particularly alongside roads and near major towns (6 Langrand, O. (1990). Guide to the Birds of Madagascar. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT, USA. Close ). Natural predators include Grandidier’s vontsira (Galidictis grandidieri), Black Kite (Milvus migrans) and Madagascar Buzzard (Buteo brachypterus) (1 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).