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Red-chested Cuckoo Was Linked to Primary Forest and Green-backed Camaroptera to Cocoa Farms in Eastern DRC

Red-chested cuckoo flying through open woodland vegetation
Research · Ecology

Bird surveys in and around the Okapi Wildlife Reserve in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo found distinct bird communities in primary forest, cocoa farms and annual-crop fields. Among the habitat indicators, red-chested cuckoo (Cuculus solitarius) was associated with primary forest, while green-backed camaroptera (Camaroptera brachyura) was associated with cocoa farms.

Mist nets are fine mesh nets stretched between supports to temporarily capture flying birds so they can be handled, measured or sampled.

Researchers surveyed 19 sites in the reserve and the surrounding Mambasa agroforestry landscape using mist nets and passive acoustic recorders. They documented 95 bird species. In the acoustic surveys, cocoa farms had the highest species richness — the number of species present — followed by primary forest and annual-crop fields. Primary forest, however, had the highest diversity indices, which also reflect how abundances are distributed among species, followed by cocoa farms and annual-crop fields.

Acoustic monitoring identified several species with strong habitat associations. Red-chested cuckoo was one of nine species associated with primary forest. The authors describe these forest-associated species as potentially valuable indicators for monitoring the effects of human activities. Green-backed camaroptera was one of two species associated specifically with cocoa farms.

The bird communities in primary forest remained distinct from those in both cocoa farms and annual-crop fields. The researchers note that structurally diverse cocoa farms, including remnant forest trees used for shade, can provide important habitat for some birds in fragmented landscapes, while the results also underline the role of protected primary forest in maintaining a different and more diverse bird community.

Sources and image credit

  1. Tabe Tiku, R. C., Jones, S. E. I., Elikwo, M. N. F., Cyril, K., Ngoy, S., Zaunbrecher, V., & Sehgal, R. N. M. (2026). Bird community composition across a land use gradient in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology, 97(1), 30–43. https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2026.2620763Primary peer-reviewed study first published online 30 March 2026. Surveys at 19 sites in and around the Okapi Wildlife Reserve documented 95 bird species; red-chested cuckoo was significantly associated with primary forest and green-backed camaroptera with cocoa farms.

Image: Derek Keats / Wikimedia Commons / Flickr — wild red-chested cuckoo photographed at Raptors View Wildlife Estate, Hoedspruit, Limpopo, South Africa, 31 October 2022; representative species image, not a bird from the eastern DRC study · CC BY 2.0 · Source

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Ecology

SPECIES IN THIS STORY

Species in this story

Red-chested Cuckoo Cuculus solitarius Explore species Green-backed Camaroptera Camaroptera brachyura Explore species

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