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Description
The Jacobin Cuckoo, Clamator jacobinus, is a complex species. Here in Southern Africa we get two kinds that are non-breeding visitors from further north in Africa and Asia, and another kind that breeds here and overwinters further north. This southern kind also differs from the others in laying white rather than greenish-blue eggs. Also, the southern form comes in two colour schemes: black and white, as depicted here, or all-black (except for white patches in the wings). The local jacobins parasitize mainly bulbuls, drongos and shrikes. The young cuckoos are not as aggressive as others and sometimes the foster parents succeed in raising their own chicks along with the cuckoo chicks! Jacobins have characteristic loud calls and are sometimes heard deep in the night. Pencil, coloured in Photoshop.

Description
The Jacobin Cuckoo, Clamator jacobinus, is a complex species. Here in Southern Africa we get two kinds that are non-breeding visitors from further north in Africa and Asia, and another kind that breeds here and overwinters further north. This southern kind also differs from the others in laying white rather than greenish-blue eggs. Also, the southern form comes in two colour schemes: black and white, as depicted here, or all-black (except for white patches in the wings). The local jacobins parasitize mainly bulbuls, drongos and shrikes. The young cuckoos are not as aggressive as others and sometimes the foster parents succeed in raising their own chicks along with the cuckoo chicks! Jacobins have characteristic loud calls and are sometimes heard deep in the night. Pencil, coloured in Photoshop.