CUCKOOS 
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3SS. Black- billed Cuckoo, ee codcou a bec noir. Coccyzus eri/lhrophthaitnus . 
L, 11-85. Plate XXXI A. Ol ve-fawn above, all white below, long tail, outer feathers 
only slightly tipped with white. A slightly curved black bill (Figure 377). 
Specific details of Black-billed Cuckoo; 
scale, j. 
Distinctions. To be mistaken only for the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, but not occurring 
in British Columbia. It is distinguished from that species by all-black bill, practically 
an evenly coloured wing, black on tail only in faint subtern in a 1 bar, and the white tail-tips 
reduced to thumb marks. 
Field Marks. The long, flexible outline in flight and general colour make this species 
recognizable as a cuckoo. The black bill, lack of conspicuous cinnamon patches on wing 
in flight, and tail the same colour as the back, and with only small white tips, are the best 
specific field marks, the presence of cuckoos in the neighbourhood will always be known 
by their characteristic notes, especially a slow, measured U kuck-kuck-kuck,” etc. and the 
bird is more often heard than seen. 
Nesting. A loose structure of sticks near the ground, in thickets. 
Distribution. Eastern North America. In Canada, westward, occasional in the 
southern parts of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and sections of Alberta. Slightly more 
northern in its range than the Yellow- billed. 
Order — Strigiformes. Nocturnal Birds of Prey. Owls 
The owls are easily recognized. The cere hidden in the feathers of 
the face, and the striking facial disk or feather rings about the eyes (Figures 
378 and 880) are distinctive to the most casual observer. They are mostly 
nocturnal, but a few species habitually hunt by day and some others do so 
occasionally. Even the nocturnal owls, however, see quite well by day. 
They may be momentarily dazed when brought suddenly from dark to 
bright light, and some species repose such confidence in immobility to escape 
detection by day as to allow themselves to be almost caught in the hand, but 
when finally they take flight they thread the tangled mazes of the tree tops 
and brush so unerringly that little doubt of their visual powers remains. 
The feathers are a most interesting feature in owls. They are peculiar- 
ly soft and cling together in a way that keeps the air from passing through 
the small interstices and ensures the silent flight characteristic of the 
suborder. An owl can pass so closely as to fan the face with its wing and 
yet be inaudible. 
Two families are represented in Canada: Tytonidae the Barn Owls, 
represented by one species which is an accidental visitor from the south; 
and Strigidae the Typical Owls. 
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