The Yellow-billed Cuckoo 



By WILLIAM DUTCHER 



President National Association of Audubon Societies 



DESCRIPTION 



The general color above is a uniform olive-brown, in some lights showing considerable 

 bronze reflection; there is quite a large area of bright reddish brown or cinnamon on the 

 primaries ; under parts pure silky white, faintly tinged with gray on upper breast ; tail black 

 below with six outside feathers showing large terminal white spots which are always visi- 

 ble, also showing from above when the tail is spread; legs and feet dark; bill, upper 

 mandible and tip of lower one black, the remainder of the lower one yellow. 



Size. — From tip of bill to end of tail varies in individuals from ii to 12.70 inches. 



The Black-billed Cuckoo (C. erythrophthalmus) is very similar to the Yellow-billed 

 in appearance, but may always be readily distinguished by the color of the bill, which is 

 entirely black. The cinnamon color on the primaries is lacking. It may also be quickly 

 recognized by the color of the under part of the tail, which is gray instead of black and the 

 terminal white spots are very small. 



The Mangrove Cuckoo { C. minor) is very similar to the Yellow-billed except that it 

 lacks the cinnamon on the primaries and below is a uniform dark buff instead of white. 



Nest. — Is a very poorly constructed and frail affair, merely a platform of small sticks, 

 with a little lining of moss, grass, pine needles, dry blossoms, etc. 



Eggs. — From two to five in number, of a pale greenish blue color. 



Distribution. — The Yellow-billed Cuckoo is found during the breeding season in all 

 parts of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains and as far north as the upper border 

 of the States. The Black-billed Cuckoo is found from about 35° north latitude to 47° in 

 the East and as high as 51° in the West. West of the Rocky Mountains the California 

 Cuckoo is found, ranging as far north as southern British Columbia. This Cuckoo is 

 almost an exact counterpart of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, being slightly smaller in size. The 

 Mangrove Cuckoo is a West Indian form, which is confined in the United States to the 

 border of the Gulf between West Florida and Louisiana. 



The Cuckoo is probably one of the least known of North American 

 birds. This is due to the fact that it is very retiring in its habits, secretive 

 being the word that best describes its method of hiding in the thick foliage 

 or shrubbery. It is a very striking bird in appearance, not so much on 

 account of its color, which is severely plain, almost Quaker-like in its 

 modesty, but on account of its shape, which is so narrow in proportion to 

 the length that it always reminds the writer of an arrow. The flight of the 

 Cuckoo is also a marked characteristic and when once known will serve as 

 a sure means of identification. It has several notes, the most familiar one 

 being Cow-cow, or, coo-coo. However, learning the notes of birds by actual 

 observation is one of the essentials that the writer suggests to his readers. 

 The series of leaflets now being issued in BiRD-LoRE is primarily to 

 introduce the bird to the reader; an intimate acquaintance can follow only 

 as the result of repeated visits. The Cuckoo is with us only during the 

 breeding season, retiring southward in the autumn. Its nesting habits are 

 of special interest and will well repay the student and bird-lover for the time 



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