Bird

Black drongo (kotwal)

Dicrurus macrocercus

हिन्दी: कोतवाल, भुजंगा

IUCN: Least Concern

Glossy black drongo with a deeply forked tail on a thorny branch

Scientific name: Dicrurus macrocercus
Hindi name: कोतवाल, भुजंगा
Family: Dicruridae, order Passeriformes
Group: Bird
Conservation status: Least Concern
Length: About 28 cm

The fearless 'policeman' of the fields.

Spot it Glossy black all over with a long, deeply forked tail; male and female look alike.
Home Open farmland, grassland and wires along roads.
Food web Catches flying insects in the air, often from a perch or from the backs of cattle.
Why it matters Eats huge numbers of grasshoppers and crop pests.

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