biology

Large hawk-cuckoo

Large hawk-cuckoo is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Large hawk-cuckoo rather than just read about it. In short: The large hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx sparverioides) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It has a wide breeding distribution from temperate Asia along the Himalayas extending to East Asia.

Key takeaways

Large hawk-cuckoo belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Large hawk-cuckoo to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Large hawk-cuckoo from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The large hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx sparverioides) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It has a wide breeding distribution from temperate Asia along the Himalayas extending to East Asia. Many populations winter further south. They are known for their loud and repetitive calls which are similar to that of the common hawk-cuckoo but do not rise in crescendo. They are also somewhat larger and adults can be readily told apart from the smaller common hawk-cuckoo by the black patch on the chin. They are brood-parasites of babblers and laughing-thrushes.

Distribution It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Found as a vagrant on Christmas Island. The subspecies H. s. bocki of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo is usually considered a separate species, the dark hawk-cuckoo.

Habitats Its natural habitats are temperate forest and subtropical or tropical mangrove forest.

Behaviour They call in summer and calling goes on well after dusk. In their winter grounds, they tend to be silent. Like many other cuckoos, this species is a brood parasite. Many laughing-thrushes (example Pterorhinus sannio) are capable of detecting the eggs of the cuckoo and remove them. The cuckoos lay eggs that mimic those of their hosts.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Large hawk-cuckoo

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Large hawk-cuckoo claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Large hawk-cuckoo before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Large hawk-cuckoo ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Large hawk-cuckoo

In research: Large hawk-cuckoo appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Large hawk-cuckoo in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Large hawk-cuckoo is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Birds described in 1832, Birds of China, Birds of Southeast Asia, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Large hawk-cuckoo outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Large hawk-cuckoo in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Large hawk-cuckoo means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Large hawk-cuckoo out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Large hawk-cuckoo in simple terms?

The large hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx sparverioides) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It has a wide breeding distribution from temperate Asia along the Himalayas extending to East Asia.

Why does Large hawk-cuckoo matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Large hawk-cuckoo?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Large hawk-cuckoo.