YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO 63 



then perhaps throw itself down to the ground, fluttering and tum- 

 bling along, feigning lameness, after the manner of many ground- 

 nesting birds, uttering loud, guttural cries of distress. 



Voice. — We hear the voice of the cuckoo much oftener than we see 

 the bird ; the well-known sound comes to us, like a wandering voice, 

 from the depths of some shady retreat, but we cannot see the hidden 

 author. We can recognize it easily as the voice of a cuckoo, but it 

 is not always so easy to identify the species by its notes, though 

 some keen observers claim that they can do so. Certain songs are 

 characteristic of each of the two species, but both have a great va- 

 riety of notes and many notes that are much alike in both. The 

 jiotes of the yellow-billed cuckoo may be a trifle harsher and a little 

 louder, but they are not always recognizable. The characteristic note 

 of the yellow-billed cuckoo is well described by Charles J. Spiker 

 (1935) as follows: "What may be considered the song of this species 

 is a series of rapid, wooden-sounding syllables resembling the follow- 

 ing: ^'^^7*:;-^Wi^-A;'M^'-^w^-AJw^-C(3a6)^y-cea<?10-cea6>'lo-cea(9^o/ the kuJcs being 

 given rapidly, the ceaows more deliberately and with longer intervals." 



Bendire (1895) writes: 



One of their commonest notes is a low "noo-coo-coo-coo ;" another sounds 

 more lilje "cow-cow-cow" or "kow-kow-kow," several times repeated; others 

 resemble the syllables of "ough, ough, ough," slowly and softly uttered; some 

 remind me of the "kloop-kloop" of the Bittern; occasionally a note something 

 like the "kiuh-kiuh-kiuh" of the Flicker is also uttered; a low sharp "tou- 

 wity-whit" and "hweet hwee" is also heard during the nesting season. Though 

 ordinarily not what might be called a social bird, I have sometimes during 

 the mating season seen as many as eight in the same tree, and on such occa- 

 sions they indulge in quite a number of calls, and if the listener can only 

 keep still long enough he has an excellent opportunity to hear a regular Cuckoo 

 concert. 



Various other interpretations of the different notes have been given 

 by other writers, but the above quotations cover fairly well the ordi- 

 nary variations. The song, as given by Mr. Spiker above, is some- 

 times more prolonged by lengthening the series of kuks, with increas- 

 ing speed of utterance and adding to the series of ceaows, with slowly 

 decreasing speed. I believe that the black-billed cuckoo never gives 

 this prolonged song, accelerated during the first half and retarded 

 during the last half; its song is given in more even time, and is gen- 

 erally shorter. The song of the yellow-billed cuckoo is often heard 

 during the night, and its notes are often uttered while flying. 



Field marks. — A cuckoo may be easily recognized as a cuckoo by 

 its size, shape, and color — a long, slender bird, longer than a robin, 

 with a long tail, olive-brown above and white below; but the two 

 species look very much alike unless the distinctive markings can be 

 clearly seen. The yellow lower mandible of this species can be seen 

 only at short range. But the rufous in the wing feathers is evident 



