Asian Koel: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Birds of Asia, Africa and Australia · day 7 of 7

Five facts

1. Like many cuckoos, the koel lets other birds do the babysitting. It slips its eggs into the nests of crows and other birds, which bring up the chicks.
2. A koel chick first calls like a crow. Unlike some cuckoo chicks, it does not try to get rid of its foster brothers and sisters.
3. Grown-up koels mostly eat fruit and may guard a fruiting tree from other fruit eaters. In India, they help spread sandalwood seeds.
4. Koels are great at settling new places. They were among the first birds to reach the volcanic island of Krakatau, and reached Singapore in the 1980s.
5. Ancient Indian texts from about 2000 BC call the koel 'the one raised by others', which may be the oldest written mention of this nest trick.

The quiz

1. Who raises Asian koel chicks?

• Both koel parents in their own nest
• Only the koel father
• Crows and other host birds (correct)
• No one, the chicks fend for themselves

Koels leave their eggs with crows and other host birds, which raise the young.

2. What does a young koel's first call sound like?

• A crow (correct)
• A cat
• A frog
• It makes no sound until it can fly

The young koel initially calls like a crow, like its foster family.

3. What do adult koels mainly eat?

• Fish
• Grass
• Large mammals
• Fruit (correct)

Adult koels feed mainly on fruit, which is unusual for a cuckoo.

4. Koels were among the first birds to settle which volcanic island?

• Iceland
• Krakatau (correct)
• Hawaii
• Galápagos

They were among the pioneer birds to colonise Krakatau.

5. What did ancient Indian texts call the koel?

• The bird that never sleeps
• The king of crows
• The one raised by others (correct)
• The singer of the rain

The Vedas called it a name meaning 'that which was raised by others'.

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