Yesterday we spent our day in Madagascar looking into the trees for the incredible Madagascar Tree Boa and today our necks will continue to be cramped as we scan the trees for the beautiful Blue Coua. If it weren’t the thick evergreen forests where these birds live, we would have no issues spotting these non-parasitic cuckoo birds considering their large size and dark blue colour. So make sure you keep your eyes peeled and let me know if you happen to come across one of these spectacular birds.
The Blue Bird
The Blue Coua has an average height of 50 cm (19.6 inches) and weighs up to 232 grams (8.2 ounces), which is fairly large for a cuckoo bird species. Interestingly enough, almost all of that 19.6 inches is blue in colour. This particular bird has a dark blue plumage, dark blue skin around the eye and a black beak…hey, wait a minute, why isn’t their beak blue? Well, they have to have a little variety with their wardrobe, don’t they?
So why do these birds adore the colour blue so much?
Well, I am not sure what the purpose the blue colouring serves this cuckoo but I am willing to bet it has something to do with blending into their environment. After all, when you rely heavily on catching insects, small reptiles and fruit (okay, so maybe catching a berry isn’t too difficult but that is beside the point) you have to blend into your surroundings. When not feeding on fruit bearing trees, the Blue Coua will use the trees branches to create a lovely platform nest.
Face to Face with a Chick
Inside this platform nest composed of twigs and leaves will lay a single egg. Yes, these birds only produce one egg at a time but let me tell you, the chick that hatches from that egg is quite impressive. In my opinion the most interesting feature of the young Blue Coua chick is the inside of their mouth. Looking at the picture to the left you will notice an unique design inside their mouths that look eerily similar to a face. What is the purpose of this cleverly designed face? Again, I don’t have any scientific evidence but my guess is this design acts as a defence mechanism for the little chicks. Just imagine how surprised you would be going in for the kill when all of a sudden a large face appears out of nowhere. This is pretty smart if you ask me and it obviously works quite well.
