Red-billed Ground-Cuckoo (Neomorphus pucheranii)

Identification & Behavior: ~48.5 cm (19 in). The Red-billed Ground-Cuckoo is greenish brown above and light brown below. It has a long broad tail and a conspicuous black crest that the bird constantly erects and flattens. The throat and breast show brownish scaling. It has a broad black band across the breast. It forages on the ground. It is similar to the Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, but is distinguished by a red base of the bill and orbital skin, and a black crown and crest. The ranges of these two ground-cuckoos come closer in central Peru, but they appear not to occur together.

Status: The Red-billed Ground-Cuckoo is rare in the Amazonian lowlands where it is known to occur on the east side of the Napo River and the south side of the Amazon and Ucayali Rivers. It also occurs in Co, Ec, and Br.

Name in Spanish: Cuco-Terrestre de Pico Rojo.

Sub-species: Red-billed Ground-Cuckoo (Neomorphus pucheranii pucheranii), (Deville), 1851. Amazonian Colombia (rare in SE), Peru, Ecuador (rare in NE) and W Brazil N of R Amazon.
(N. p. lepidophanes), Todd, 1925. Amazonian Peru and W Brazil S of Amazon River.

Meaning of Name: Neomorphus: L. neo = new, different; and morphus = shape, appearance. pucheranii: honor of the zoologist and French explorer, Jacques Pucheran (1817-1894).

See more of the Family Cuculidae