Leptosomus discolor
Silhouette: Brian Ralphs (photograph) and T. Michael Keesey (silhouette) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The cuckoo-roller or courol (Leptosomus discolor) is the only bird in the family Leptosomidae, which was previously often placed in the order Coraciiformes but is now placed in its own order Leptosomiformes. The cuckoo-roller is at the root of a group that contains the Trogoniformes, Bucerotiformes, Piciformes, and Coraciiformes. Despite its name, the cuckoo-roller does not share close evolutionary origins with cuckoos or rollers, although for long it was counted among the closer relatives of the latter.
It is a medium-large bird, inhabiting forests and woodlands in Madagascar and the Comoro Islands. Based on its smaller size, differences in the plumage, and minor difference in the voice, the last of these is sometimes considered a separate species, the Comoros cuckoo-roller (L. gracilis).
The cuckoo-roller has a total length of 40–50 cm (16–20 in); the nominate subspecies is the largest, and L. d. gracilis the smallest. Unlike the true rollers and ground rollers, where the sexes have identical appearance... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ankarafantsika National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 2 | Mantadia National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 3 | Ranomafana National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 4 | Berenty Reserve | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walsrode World Bird Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | Botanical and Zoological Garden of Tsimbazaza | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
No species of the same family or order lives in Berenty Reserve, so these are its closest relatives here: other birds.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Cuckoo-roller sighting in Berenty Reserve on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 55th most-seen of the 63 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cuckoo-roller sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Cuckoo-roller sightings, Berenty Reserve ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Ankarafantsika National Park (Madagascar, about 50%), Mantadia National Park (Madagascar, about 40%) and Ranomafana National Park (Madagascar, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cuckoo-roller is recorded against all the birds logged in Berenty Reserve (8 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
