NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Blue-faced Malkoha
Phaenicophaeus viridirostris (Jerdon, 1840)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Blue-faced Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus viridirostris) close-up from Mysore, Karnataka, India
Mvshreeram · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The blue-faced malkoha (Phaenicophaeus viridirostris) or small green-billed malkoha, is a non-parasitic cuckoo found in the scrub and deciduous forests of peninsular India and Sri Lanka. It has a waxy, dark, blue-grey plumage on its upperparts and has a long tail with graduated white-tipped feathers. The throat and chin are dark with spiny pale feathers that are branched. The lower belly is a dull creamy to rufous colour. The bill is apple green, and a naked patch of blue skin surrounds the eye. The sexes are alike. The blue-faced malkoha is a bird of open forests and scrub jungle.
Wikipedia contributors, Blue-faced malkoha; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:04:03.709565+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Phaenicophaeus viridirostris (Jerdon, 1840)
- Name authority
- (Jerdon, 1840)
- Common name
- Blue-faced Malkoha
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Phaenicophaeus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderCuculiformes
- familyCuculidae
- genusPhaenicophaeus Stephens, 1815
- speciesPhaenicophaeus viridirostris (Jerdon, 1840)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Phaenicophaeus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Chestnut-breasted MalkohaPhaenicophaeus curvirostris (Shaw, 1810) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-bellied MalkohaPhaenicophaeus diardi (R. Lesson, 1830) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red-faced MalkohaPhaenicophaeus pyrrhocephalus (Pennant, 1769) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Mentawai MalkohaPhaenicophaeus oeneicaudus J. Verreaux & É. Verreaux, 1855 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chestnut-bellied MalkohaPhaenicophaeus sumatranus (Raffles, 1822) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Green-billed MalkohaPhaenicophaeus tristis (R. Lesson, 1830) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Zanclostomus viridirostris Jerdon, 1840 Jerdon, 1840 | synonym |
| Rhopodytes viridirostris (Jerdon, 1840) (Jerdon, 1840) | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=554726 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4FLFC. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.