Northern Hawk-cuckoo

Open encyclopedia reference

The northern hawk-cuckoo or rufous hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx hyperythrus) is a species of cuckoo found in eastern China, North and South Korea, far eastern Russia, and Japan. Northern populations migrate to overwinter in Borneo. This elusive species is considered rare over most of its range and many of its life history traits remain understudied. It is known to perch in the crowns of tall trees, making direct observation difficult.

The northern hawk-cuckoo, along with the Malaysian hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx fugax) and the Hodgson’s hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx nisicolor), were all once considered the same species, H. fugax. All three were recently split into their own monotypic species.

The genus Hierococcyx are called hawk-cuckoos due to their broad, rounded wings and plumage which lend them great resemblance to Japanese and Chinese sparrowhawks. They are similar enough that in the field hawk-cuckoos are often mistaken for an Accipiter.

Wikipedia contributors, Northern hawk-cuckoo; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:44:16.984182+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Hierococcyx hyperythrus (Gould, 1856)

Name authority

(Gould, 1856)

Common name

Northern Hawk-cuckoo

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Cuculiformes

Family

Cuculidae

Genus

Hierococcyx

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.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderCuculiformes
10. familyCuculidae
11. genusHierococcyx S. Müller, 1845
12. speciesHierococcyx hyperythrus (Gould, 1856)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Hierococcyx. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 88 records assigned to Cuculidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

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.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=1243747 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

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:CNWZH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.