At a Glance
On the Philippine island of Mindoro, the Black-hooded Coucal was once a common sighting. The 30 species of coucals found across parts of Asia, Africa and the Pacific are members of the cuckoo family. While they are not brood parasites like many species in the family, coucals have another reproductive strategy: the male birds (which are smaller than the females) provide most of the parental care.
The Black-hooded Coucal prefers lowland primary forest, making its home in dense vegetation. Its population has plummeted due to decades of forest destruction, and survives only in a few isolated lowland forest fragments. While deforestation rates have slowed in recent decades, slash-and-burn agriculture, logging and rattan harvesting (as well as dynamite blasting for marble at one location) continue to threaten the remaining populations, including in protected areas. In addition, the species has possibly been displaced by another coucal species, the much more common Philippine Coucal, on the outer edges of the forest.
Expanding protected areas and improving their management is essential to protect the birds that remain, but a conservation breeding program is required to ensure their survival and boost wild populations to prevent this species from disappearing entirely.
At a glance
Taxa
Birds
Geography
Philippines
Status
Critically Endangered
Habitat
Forest
Estimated Population
Approximately 150 to 600 mature individuals
Threats
Habitat destruction and degradation; fragmented population
Potential Recovery Actions
Expand habitat protection; establish conservation breeding program
