Vietnam is renowned for its rich ecosystem, home to many rare bird species. Notably, some species are known by very unique names.
The Bird Known as “Thirsty”
Among them is the bird with the unusual and lesser-known name, the Thirsty bird. According to the IUCN Red List of threatened species, the Thirsty bird (scientific name: Clamator coromandus) belongs to the Cuculidae family.
Image of the uniquely named “Thirsty” bird. (Photo: Patrick Tai)
This species was first named by Linnaeus in 1766. His description of what he called Cuculus coromandus was based on notes by Brisson, who described this bird as “Le coucou huppé de Coromandel” collected along the Coromandel Coast of India. Buffon noted its close relationship to the Jacobin cuckoo and referred to it as “le Jacobin huppé de Coromande”. This species was later placed under the genera Coccystes and Oxylophus before being assigned to Clamator.
Upon reaching maturity, both males and females typically measure between 42 to 46 cm (including tail feathers), have wingspans of 15 to 17 cm, and weigh between 100 to 120 g. Their tail feathers are quite impressive, ranging from 20 to 23 cm, while their legs are relatively short, measuring only 2 to 3 cm, and their sharp black beak is about 2 to 3 cm long.
In Vietnam, the Thirsty bird is primarily distributed across the northern and central provinces as well as mountainous regions. (Photo: Wild Forest)
The Thirsty bird can be found in Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia. They breed along the Himalayas and migrate southward in winter to Sri Lanka, southern India, and the tropical regions of Southeast Asia, including parts of Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.
In Vietnam, the Thirsty bird is mainly found in northern and central provinces, as well as mountainous areas. Their preferred habitats are mountainous forests and plains, where there is dense underbrush and rivers.
The Thirsty bird can be easily mistaken for the watercock at first glance. (Photo: Animal Species)
According to the Vietnam Ornamental Plants Association, the Thirsty bird has a brown back, broad rufous-edged wing feathers, and a white belly. Its eyes are a light reddish-brown, and its beak is black with a slight yellowish tint at the base, while the edges are pink. Its legs are gray or brownish-gray.
Information from Bird Watching Vietnam indicates that the Thirsty bird has a black back, white nape, and long recognizable plumage, with rufous-brown wings. At a glance, it can be confused with the watercock. Their call typically consists of two whistle-like sounds, ‘bi-i bi-i…bi-i bi-i’, which last monotonously about half a second and are repeated after a few seconds.
The diet of the Thirsty bird mainly consists of small insects such as grasshoppers, crickets, butterflies, caterpillars, spiders, ant larvae, pupae, ant eggs, crickets, bees, flies, and earthworms. Additionally, they also consume ripe fruits like figs, mangoes, bananas, and dragon fruit.
A Bird with Strange Behavior
This bird is quite shy and often quickly seeks to hide when it senses danger or hears unusual sounds. The Thirsty bird lives a solitary life, only pairing during the breeding season.
The breeding season for the Thirsty bird usually occurs at the beginning of summer, when environmental temperatures are high, facilitating faster hatching of their eggs. During the breeding season, males will sing and dance for extended periods to attract females for mating and reproduction.
Like the cuckoo, the Thirsty bird does not build nests and lays its eggs as a parasite in the nests of other bird species. (Photo: Shutterstock)
Similar to the cuckoo, the Thirsty bird also does not build nests but lays its eggs as a parasite in the nests of other bird species. They most commonly lay their parasitic eggs in the nests of babblers, particularly the Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush (Garrulax monileger), which accounts for up to 45% of recorded cases. Other host species include the common drongo, eastern cattle egret, white-browed waterhen, blue whistling thrush, orange-headed thrush, black-breasted thrush, white-headed babbler (Turdoides leucocephala), rusty-cheeked scimitar babbler, and long-tailed shrike.
The eggs are light blue and typically lack gloss, and there are often more than one egg in a single nest. Egg sizes range from 25.4 to 29.9 mm in length and from 20.3 to 24.4 mm in width. The chicks are not yet well described, and data about them remain limited.
Currently, the Thirsty bird does not face global threats and is classified as “Least Concern” by BirdLife International.
