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Animal India

The Common Hawk-Cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius), popularly known as the Brainfever bird, because of its three-note call enunciates the term ''brain fever'', is a medium-sized cuckoo resident in the Indian Subcontinent. It bears a close resemblance to the Shikra, a sparrow hawk, even in its style of flying and landing on a perch. Like many other cuckoos, this species is a brood parasite, laying its eggs in the nests of babblers. Common Hawk-Cuckoos feed mainly on insects and are specialized feeders that can handle hairy caterpillars. The species is arboreal and rarely descends to the ground. A Common Hawk-Cuckoo is sitting on the moringa tree at Tehatta, West Bengal; India on 18/09/2022. (Photo by Soumyabrata Roy/NurPhoto)

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