A slender Old World Cuckoo with pointed wings and a long, rounded tail. Male: Gray back and head with pale whitish-gray throat and breast. Dark eye with yellow eye-ring. Black, decurved bill with yellow base. White belly with grayish-black barring. Buffy undertail coverts. Black wings and tail. Gray morph female: Similar to male but with buffy-orange wash on breast. Hepatic morph female: Rusty upperparts and breast. White belly. Heavy grayish-black bars on tail, rump, upperparts and underparts. Very similar to the slightly larger Common Cuckoo. Gray morph Common is slightly paler overall with slimmer bars on underparts.They also lack buffy undertail coverts. In flight, Oriental has contrasting pale wing linings; Common does not. Hepatic morph Common lacks barring on rump.

Length: 32 (cm) Wingspan: 71 (cm)

Habitat:

Prefers various woodlands, forest edges, or clearings with scattered shrubs and trees.

Behavior:

Often lays eggs in other species' nests. Feeds on the ground or in flight.

Feeding:

Feeds on insects; especially caterpillars.