Yellow Billed Cuckoo
Coccyzus americanus
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| Adult photographed at Greenfield Lake, June 19th, 2020 |
The Yellow Billed Cuckoo is a fairly common summer resident in the Carolinas that is often overlooked due to its secretive lifestyle. This bird is distantly related to the more widely-known Common Cuckoo which is the bird that makes the "Cucc-KOO" call in namesake clocks, as well as being a brood parasite like our cowbirds. The cuckoo occurs in our region from Mid-April to October and is found in almost any habitat with trees and shrubs. They feed on caterpillars and other insects and congregate around tent moth, gypsy moth, or Giant Silkworm infestations during the summer and autumn. Cuckoos are often called "Stormcrows", or "Raincrows" because their calls are often heard before or during thunderstorms and the birds may time nesting cycles to rainy periods, which comes with an increase in insect prey.
Description
Cuckoos are medium sized birds with a very slender profile and a long tail. These birds are about the size of a grackle or Blue Jay, and have pointed wings like an Accipiter Sparrowhawk (notably Cooper's Hawk). Adults are generally greyish brown or reddish brown on its back with white undersides, and a black and white undertail. As its name suggests, this species has a long yellow bill with a hooked tip. The Black Billed Cuckoo is similar except with a less vivid tail pattern and a black bill.
- Size: L: 30-33cm or 12-13" (around the size of a Common Grackle or Blue Jay)
- Plumage: Grey to reddish brown above with white underside, black and white tail
- Body: Fairly large bird with a very long tail, yellowish bill with a slightly hooked tip, slender profile
- Flight: Comparable in shape to a Sharp Shinned or Cooper's Hawk, can also be mistaken for a Brown Thrasher, Mourning Dove, or Blue Jay. Long pointed wings with rapid wingbeats and long glides.
Calls
The Yellow Billed Cuckoo makes a wide variety of calls and is often heard during the heat of the day, around dusk, or before and during rainstorms. Its calls can be compared to frogs, barking dogs, bitterns, or even the sound of Mourning Doves. Cuckoos have several types of vocalizations. North American Cuckoos do not produce the hollow two-note call ("Cucc-KOOO!) that Eurasian Cuckoos make.
Rain Call: The most familiar call of the Cuckoo is a rather loud rattling sound that has an abrupt stop and is best compared to a noisemaker or a clapper (like those used in Spanish Flamenco music). Some variants of the call has a Morse Code like pattern, not unlike certain frog species.
Cooing Call: The other common call is a hollow cooing sound that is often heard during nesting. This call is given repeatedly with a pause in between each call. It can be compared to a barking dog in the distance and might even resemble the "Cuckoo Call"
Hammer Call: The third common call is a slower knocking sound that may sound like a door knocker or someone carpenter's hammer.
Listen to examples on Cornell All About Birds
Notes
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| Moth caterpillars are the main food for Cuckoos |
Season: April to October, some birds linger as late as December
Range: Throughout the Carolinas, but rare at higher elevations in Appalachia
Habitat: Deciduous or mixed woodlands with dense understory, hedgerows, copses, wooded countryside, swamps, parkland, and around gardens. Also found in hickories, oaks, and other shade trees around pastures, towns, villages, and in urban settings. Often found near water.
Diet: Cuckoos eat mainly insects but occasionally take lizards and treefrogs. Butterfly and moth caterpillars make up a significant portion of their diet. Populations gather around trees with tent moth, silkworm, or gypsy moth infestations and time their nests around caterpillar cycles
Nesting: Yellow Billed Cuckoos nest in dense shrubs, and decidous trees along woodland edges, hedgerows, or watercourses. They are most likely to breed in loose colonies in riparian buffers, lakeshores, and borders of marshes. Pairs can nest any time from May to September and raise 1-2 broods per year. As stated above, their nests are often aligned to caterpillar populations. Because of this, breeding can occur almost anywhere with webworm infestations, and there is no set time for breeding. This cuckoos occasionally parasitize the nests of songbirds but not to the extent of the Eurasian, Oriental, and African Cuckoos. Most pairs build a flimsy nest of twigs in tree branches and lay 1-2 eggs. Cuckoos develop rapidly and may leave the nest in three days but generally do not leave the nest tree until 6-7 days.
Behavior: Cuckoos are generally slow-moving birds that walk or hop along branches in trees or thickets. They are most likely to be spotted flying over open areas, waterways, or woodland clearings as they dash from tree to tree. Their flight pattern is comparable to a Cooper's Hawk with stiff wingbeats and long glides. Cuckoos remain in dense cover and are difficult to find. Learn more at Cornell All About Birds.
Where to Find
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| Cuckoos like semi-open areas bordering woodlands or marshes |
Cuckoos can be found in virtually any habitat in the Cape Fear but are generally nomadic, and difficult to spot. They often do not stay in the same area for long. Look for these birds near trees with tent moth or webworm infestations (silk domes, defoliated leaves), or along hedges, willow/alder thickets, and woodland edges. Good places include along creeks, streams, or manmade wetlands, in residential areas, open countryside, and in city parks.
Greenfield Lake, Burnt Mill Creek Greenway (Wallace Park to Princess Place Dr.), and Holly Shelter Boat Ramp area are good habitats for Cuckoos.
Similar Species: The Black Billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus), is a rare as an autumn migrant and generally occurs as a breeder in Appalachia. It has a black bill, subdued tail pattern, and is mostly found in more wooded habitats.
Garden Information
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| Grove of Black Walnuts, Pecan, and Mockernut Hickories, habitat of silkworms and tent moths |
Yellow Billed Cuckoos may visit gardens and residential areas any time from April to October and are most likely to be heard during rainstorms or around sunset. They are difficult to spot and rarely come out into view. Cuckoos are generally seen in deciduous trees such as hickories or in dense hedgerows, although they can also feed in tall perennials such as Swamp/Narrow Leaf Sunflower, Green Headed Coneflower, or in vine tangles. They will nest in any tree or shrub that has a forking branch or might choose climbing roses, wisteria, trumpet vine, or any other climber growing up a tree, wall, or wooded border. Eastern Tent Moth, Fall Webworm, and Giant Silkworm caterpillars are the main draw for cuckoos. Hickories such as Mockernut, Red, Pecan, Shagbark Hickory, as well as beeches, oaks, elms, and Black Cherries are host plants for caterpillars. Thickets of azaleas, camellias, wax myrtles, and deciduous shrubs provide cover and nest sites as well. Cuckoos do not visit bird tables and rarely use birdbaths.
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