Oriental too fast for Cuckoo chaser

Quest for in-flight pictures of Oriental Cuckoo (Cuculus optatus) got a wee lift yesterday when the above bird flew into view and sat briefly high in a tree some 30 metres away. But it took off so suddenly I was caught out  changing camera settings. The species' hawklike shape in flight makes it unmistakable. At rest it offers hints of several other cuckoos, though mainly smaller species.     

This immature Fan-tailed Cuckoo (Cacomantis flabelliformis) showed out last week amid the many Brush Cuckoos (Cacomantis variolosus) seen in numbers for several weeks. 

Here's an immature Brush showing some tail spread in a somewhat messy setting at Tyto today. Pity the Oriental is never so obliging!