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Geographic Range & Migration
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Conservation Status Comparison
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Statut de conservation
Least Concern
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Least Concern
Red-billed Malkoha
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Identification Tips — How to Tell Them Apart
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How to Tell Them Apart
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Plumage
Greater Roadrunner: boldly streaked brown above; white-cream below with dark streaks; long tail; shaggy crest; bare facial skin; fast runner
Red-billed Malkoha
Plumage
Olive-capped Coua: olive-green crown; gray body; white below; bare blue facial skin; long graduated tail; Madagascar species; olive cap
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About Each Bird (Descriptions)
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Lesser Ground-cuckoo (Morococcyx erythropygus) — 28 cm. Brown above; chestnut rump; whitish underparts; bare blue orbital skin. Inhabits dry and semi-arid scrub from Mexico to Costa Rica. Non-parasitic; builds its own nest in low shrubs. Runs on the ground hunting large insects, lizards, and amphibians. Monotypic genus endemic to Mesoamerica.
Red-billed Malkoha (Zanclostomus javanicus) — 38–44 cm. Blue-green above with a rufous belly; bright red bill and bare red orbital skin; long white-tipped tail. Inhabits primary and tall secondary forest of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and Java. Non-parasitic. Insectivore feeding on large caterpillars and invertebrates.
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Related Comparisons
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More Birds in Family
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