The Black-crowned Bazaar is a small to medium-sized bird of prey with four subspecies.
The Black-crowned Bazaar often moves alone, sometimes in small groups of 3-5 or so. It often soars and hovers over the forest, occasionally flapping its wings and flying. It is very leisurely, and sometimes it moves and hunts in the forest and on the ground. It is alert and timid, but sometimes it seems dull and lazy. The crest on its head often stands high and falls low, as if it is very sensitive to what is happening around it. It is active mainly during the day, especially in the early morning and dusk. It mainly feeds on insects such as locusts, grasshoppers, cicadas, and ants. It also likes to eat bats, as well as small vertebrates such as mice, lizards and frogs. Because there are two sharp teeth on the peak of its mouth, it looks very sharp. The call is a falsetto scream of one to three light syllables, like the meowing of a seagull.
The breeding season of the black-crowned cuckoo falcon is from April to July. Nests are located in forests on river banks or in tall trees nearby. The nests are mainly made of dead branches, with grass stems, grass leaves and bark fibers inside. Each nest contains 2-3 eggs, which are obtusely oval, off-white with tea yellow, and measure 35-46 mm × 29-38 mm, with an average of 39 mm × 32 mm.
Due to continued habitat destruction by deforestation, the number of black-crowned cuckoo falcons is considered to be declining. Between 2016 and 2020, forest cover within the species' range decreased by 5.3% (Global Forest Watch 2021), equivalent to 16.7% of the next three-generation forecast. The species uses orchards, gardens and agricultural areas in winter, but mainly nests in forests. There are no other known major threats to the species, so it is believed to be declining at a similar rate to forest loss.
In March 2022, the Black-crowned Cuckoo Falcon, a national second-level key protected wild animal, was accidentally discovered in Leigongshan National Nature Reserve. The appearance of the Black-crowned Cuckoo Falcon has updated the number of national key protected wild animals in Leigongshan National Nature Reserve to 61. Listed in the "Red List of Endangered Species of the World Conservation Union" (IUCN) 2021 ver3.1-Least Concern (LC).
Listed in Appendix I, Appendix II and Appendix III of the 2019 edition of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Listed in the second level of China's "National Key Protected Wildlife List" (February 5, 2021).
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