CreatureData

Blue-headed coucal

Centropus monachus Rüppell, 1837

LCLeast Concernbirds

The blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus) is a species in the family Cuculidae, order Cuculiformes. Recorded adults weigh 171 g to 237 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus)
Photo: Rüppell, Eduard, 1794-1884 · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the blue-headed coucal

Weight
171 g – 237 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Omnivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
wetlandsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
3src for Young per litter or clutch
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the blue-headed coucal live?

Not recorded

What is the blue-headed coucal?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is native to tropical central Africa where its typical habitat is swamps, river banks, forest edges and generally wet locations. It is a common bird with a wide range, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".

From the Wikipedia article “Blue-headed coucal” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Blue-headed_coucal&oldid=1383420029), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the blue-headed coucal endangered?

The blue-headed coucal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the blue-headed coucal classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderCuculiformes
  5. familyCuculidae
  6. genusCentropus
  7. SpeciesCentropus monachus Rüppell, 1837
Other names and names in other languages (32)
  • كوكال أزرق الرأسArabic
  • cucal capblauCatalan
  • kukačka mnišíCzech
  • cwcal penlasWelsh
  • Blånakket SporegøgDanish
  • BlaukopfkuckuckGerman
  • MönchskuckuckGerman
  • blukapa kukaloEsperanto
  • Cucal monjeSpanish
  • sinipea-kannuskäguEstonian
  • sinipääkukaaliFinnish
  • Coucal à nuque bleueFrench
  • bjeloprsi kukalCroatian
  • kékfejű bozótkakukkHungarian
  • Cucal testabluItalian
  • ズアオバンケンJapanese
  • mėlyngalvė pentinuotoji gegutėLithuanian
  • MonniksspoorkoekoekDutch
  • blåhodesporegjøkNorwegian
  • kukal niebieskogłowyPolish
  • cucal-de-nuca-azulPortuguese
  • cucal-de-cabeça-azuladaPortuguese
  • Синеголовый кукальRussian
  • Синеголовая шпорцевая кукушкаRussian
  • ostrohár mníšskySlovak
  • Plavoglavi kukalSerbian
  • blåhuvad sporrgökSwedish
  • Keşiş KukalıTurkish
  • Mavi göğüslü kukalTurkish
  • коукал ефіопськийUkrainian
  • 蓝头鸦鹃Chinese
  • 藍頭鴉鵑Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the blue-headed coucal

Other species in the same genus Centropus.

CompareBlue-headed coucal vs Greater coucalBlue-headed coucal vs Lesser coucalBlue-headed coucal vs Senegal coucalBlue-headed coucal vs Black coucal

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the blue-headed coucal?

An adult blue-headed coucal weighs 171 g – 237 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the blue-headed coucal endangered?

The blue-headed coucal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the blue-headed coucal?

The blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus) belongs to the family Cuculidae in the order Cuculiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-headed-coucal

MLA

“Blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-headed-coucal.

BibTeX
@misc{blue_headed_coucal_2026,
  title = {Blue-headed coucal (Centropus monachus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-headed-coucal},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}