Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). Despite the fact that the population trend appears to be decreasing, the decline is not believed to be sufficiently rapid to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size has not been quantified, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.
Population justification
The global population size has not been quantified, but the species is reported to be uncommon to rare throughout its range (del Hoyo et al. 1997).
Trend justification
The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and fragmentation, however declines are not thought to be rapid since the species appears to be highly tolerant of habitat degradation.
Hierococcyx fugax (as defined following the taxonomic change), is found throughout much of the Sundaic region, from south Tenasserim, Myanmar, southern Thailand, the Malay Peninsula and East Malaysia, Malaysia, Sumatra, Kalimantan, and western Java, Indonesia, and Brunei Darussalam. It is characterised as being rare or uncommon throughout most of its range, although more or less common on the Thai-Malay Peninsula and frequent on Siberut, Sumatra (Erritzoe et al. 2012).
H. fugax occurs in a variety of forested habitats including lowland and hill dipterocarp forests , kerangas forest, and peatswamp forest. The species also occurs in secondary forest, cocoa and rubber plantations and has been recorded from plains level up to 1,620 m on Borneo, 1,700 m on Sumatra (Erritzoe et al. 2012). It is a brood parasite, and hosts recorded include White-rumped Shama and Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher (Erritzoe et al. 2012). May be migratory at the northern limit of its range (Erritzoe et al. 2012).
28-30 cm. Smallish hawk-cuckoo, similar in appearance to several other species with a bright yellow eye-ring. Head and upperparts are dark grey-brown in the adult, with a black chin. The underparts are white and pinkish-rusty with dark arrowhead streaks all the way to the lower belly. Subadults are grey-barred rufous where the adults are grey; the crown is black, barred rufous and the underparts have dark brown spots or streaks edged rufous. Similar spp. Large Hawk-cuckoo C. sparverioides is larger with heavy dark barring below. C. pectoralis has a paler grey chin, C. nisicolor has a rufous suffusion to the underparts but is less pinkish than C. hyperythrus. All are very similar, but have different vocalisations. Voice. A series of very high-pitched double whistles, first note higher than the second, whii-weet, repeated up to 20 times.
Text account compilers
Butchart, S., Ekstrom, J., Martin, R, Taylor, J. & Symes, A.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Malay Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx fugax. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/malay-hawk-cuckoo-hierococcyx-fugax on 22/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 22/12/2024.