62 BULLETIN 17 6, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



shot a Cuckoo {G. americamMS^ I think it was) whose bill was 

 smeared all over with the fresh yolk of an egg." 



Yellow-billed cuckoos sometimes eat tree frogs and other small 

 frogs, and, in the Southern States, an occasional small lizard. 

 Marcia B. Clay (1929) relates the following incident: "For an hour 

 a Cuckoo searched about the dead under limbs of a huge untrimmed 

 apple tree, peering and gliding noiselessly around and around. At 

 last, after long and patient search, it dashed to the ground and began 

 to walk directly toward me through the scant grass and weeds, and 

 only then did I see a frog trying to slip away unseen. The bird 

 followed the frog a rod, pecking its victim and gloating softly Cuk^ 

 Cuk. Having vanquished its prey, the Cuckoo deftly gathered it 

 into its bill and flew away, the frog's legs sticking out stiff and 

 straight together, exactly like the dead twigs which the Cuckoo car- 

 ries to its nest." 



Behavior. — Mr. Forbush (1927) has described the quiet, retiring 

 behavior of the yellow-billed cuckoo very well as follows : 



The cuckoo is a graceful, elegant bird, calm and unperturbed ; it slips quietly 

 and rather furtively through its favorite tangles and flies easily from tree 

 to tree in the orchard, keeping for the most part under protection of the leaves, 

 which furnish excellent cover for its bronzy, upper plumage, while the shadows 

 of the foliage tend to conceal the whiteness of its under parts. It has a way also 

 of keeping its back with its greenish satiny reflections toward the intruder in 

 its solitudes, and while holding an attitude of readiness for flight it sits motion- 

 less, and its plumage so blends with its leafy environment that it does not 

 ordinarily catch the eye. In the meantime it turns its head and regards the 

 disturber with a cool, reserved, direct gaze, looking back over its shoulder, 

 apparently unafraid and giving no indication of nervousness or even undue 

 curiosity; but if the observer approaches too closely, the elegant bird slips 

 quietly away, vanishing into some leafy, cool retreat where it may enjoy the 

 silence and solitude, dear to the woodland recluse. 



The flight of the cuckoo is rather swift, easy and graceful, exceed- 

 ingly direct and horizontal, but turning frequently from side to side 

 as it threads its way through the branches of the trees, giving occa- 

 sional glimpses of its white under parts and the telltale black-and- 

 white markings in its tail ; it is stream-lined to perfection and glides 

 noiselessly through the air with its long tail streaming out behind. 

 It is very quiet in its movements in its shady retreats; it seldom 

 perches in a conspicuous place but sits motionless for long periods 

 in the dense foliage, watching, or moves about stealthily in search of 

 its prey. It might easily be overlooked, were it not for its charac- 

 teristic notes, which lead the observer to look for it. 



About its nest it is rather shy, while incubating on its eggs, slip- 

 ping away cautiously when approached, but when there are young 

 in the nest its behavior is quite different. It then becomes quite 

 solicitous and will often remain on the nest until almost touched, and 



