Black-headed Cuckooshrike

Male has dark slaty-gray head, neck, and upper breast; rest of the body is pale gray, with white on the belly. Wings darker than mantle. Female lacks the black hood, and has a whitish supercilium, brownish-gray upperparts with lightly barred back and rump, and buff-white underparts with wide brown bars. Juvenile is similar to female, but upperparts barred white. Immature similar to female. Song is a series of clear, loud whistles: “pee-pe-pe-pe-pe-twe-twee.” Some notes can be omitted, or additional notes added.

The black-headed cuckooshrike in Sri Lanka lives in forests, woodlands, gardens, orchards, and hedgerows. It can be found in lowlands and up to 1650 meters in elevation.

The black-headed cuckooshrike's diet in Sri Lanka consists mainly of insects, particularly caterpillars, as well as some fruits.