A large, thick-set, entirely black cuckooshrike. Long-tailed, with a relatively stubby bill. Resident in forests, usually in foothills and lowlands, especially coastal forest. Unlikely to be confused, but Common Cicadabird is smaller and paler sooty-gray, and Barred Cuckooshrike has a pale eye. North Melanesian Cuckooshrike’s most common call is a long descending whistle, often followed by a shrill “chii.”