NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Coppery-tailed Coucal
Centropus cupreicaudus Reichenow, 1896
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.
Open encyclopedia reference
The coppery-tailed coucal (Centropus cupreicaudus) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It was first described by the German ornithologist Anton Reichenow in 1896.
Wikipedia contributors, Coppery-tailed coucal; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:48:59.266198+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Centropus cupreicaudus Reichenow, 1896
- Name authority
- Reichenow, 1896
- Common name
- Coppery-tailed Coucal
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Centropus
- 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
- genusCentropus Illiger, 1811
- speciesCentropus cupreicaudus Reichenow, 1896
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Centropus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Short-toed CoucalCentropus rectunguis Strickland, 1847 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Lesser CoucalCentropus bengalensis (J. F. Gmelin, 1788) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Burchell's CoucalCentropus burchellii Swainson, 1838 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pied CoucalCentropus ateralbus R. Lesson, 1826 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-billed CoucalCentropus bernsteini Schlegel, 1866 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bay CoucalCentropus celebensis Quoy & Gaimard, 1832 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Green-billed CoucalCentropus chlororhynchos Blyth, 1849 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Goliath CoucalCentropus goliath Bonaparte, 1850 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-throated CoucalCentropus leucogaster (Leach, 1814) | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Buff-headed CoucalCentropus milo Gould, 1856 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Kai CoucalCentropus spilopterus G. R. Gray, 1858 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-hooded CoucalCentropus steerii Bourns & Worcester, 1894 | CuculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
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=554770 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:SB7H. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.