Coracias


Coracias is a genus of the rollers, an Old World family of near passerine birds related to the kingfishers and bee-eaters. They share the colourful appearance of those groups, blues and browns predominating. The two outer front toes are connected, but not the inner one.

Taxonomy

The generic name Coracias was used by Carl Linneaus in 1758 for birds with knife-shaped beaks and cartilaginous tongues.
The Ancient Greek word korakías, derived from korax.
Aristotle described the coracias as a bird as big as a crow with a red beak,
which some believe to be the chough.

Living species

Nine species are recognized:
ImageCommon NameScientific nameDistribution
Purple rollerCoracias naeviussub-Saharan Africa
Indian rollerCoracias benghalensisWestern Asia to Indian Subcontinent
Indochinese rollerCoracias affiniseastern India to southeast Asia
Purple-winged rollerCoracias temminckiiIslands of Sulawesi, Bangka, Lembeh, Manterawu, Muna and Butung.
Racket-tailed rollerCoracias spatulatussouthern Africa from Angola, south-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Tanzania to northern Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique
Lilac-breasted rollerCoracias caudatussub-Saharan Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula
Abyssinian rollerCoracias abyssinicustropical Africa in a belt south of the Sahara, known as the Sahel
European rollerCoracias garrulusMiddle East, Central Asia and Morocco.
Blue-bellied rollerCoracias cyanogasterSenegal to northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo

Former species

Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species as species within the genus Coracias:
Coracias rollers are watch-and wait hunters. They sit in a tree or on a post before descending on their prey and carrying it back in the beak to a perch before dismembering it. A wide range of terrestrial invertebrates, and small vertebrates such as frogs, lizards rodents and young birds, are taken. Their prey includes items avoided by many other birds, such as hairy caterpillars, insects with warning colouration and snakes. They often perch prominently whilst hunting, like giant shrikes.