Cuckoo
| International Name: | Common Cuckoo | Scientific Name: | Cuculus canorus |
| Length: | 32-36 cm (13-14 ½ ") | Wing Span: | 54-60 cm (21 ½ -24") |
| Weight: | 105-130 g (3 ¾ -4 ¾ oz) | Breeding Pairs: | 30 000 |
| Present: | Summer | Status: |  Amber List |
Description
The adult birds usually have blue-grey head, breast and upperparts, and horizontal barring on the underparts. However, the female also exists as a rare rufous (reddish) morph, so instead of being grey it is red-brown.
In flight, the Cuckoo can be easily mistaken for a Sparrowhawk or Kestrel, because it has swept-back wings and long tail. However, Sparrowhawks do not have pointed wings like the Cuckoo, and the Kestrel is streaked and not barred on the underparts.
When perched, usually in the open at the top of a tree, the Cuckoo drops its wings below the level of its tail, as in the photograph. The best places to see Cuckoo are grassland, reed beds, and edges of woodland.
Juveniles are similar to the rufous female, but with a white patch on the nape.
An old rhyme describes the Cuckoo's time in Britain:
In April I open my bill
In May I sing night and day
In June I change my tune
In July far far I fly
In August away I must
Voice
The female has a rich bubbling chuckle, but the male's song is the very familiar "cuckoo".
Generally, if you hear a Cuckoo singing you will probably not see it until it stops singing, which is when it will fly away from its song post.
Feeding
Caterpillars, especially hairy or brightly coloured poisonous ones, form the major part of the Cuckoo's diet, but also other insects. Their digestive system is specially adapted to cope with the hairs and toxins.
Breeding
The Cuckoo is a brood parasite, it lays its eggs in other birds' nests and leaves the host birds to incubate and rear its young. Dunnocks, Robins and Meadow Pipits are frequent host birds. Each female specialises in using a particular host species and will lay eggs with similar markings to the host bird's eggs, and the young Cuckoo will imitate the begging calls of the host's chicks.
| Breeding Starts | Number of Clutches | Number of Eggs | Incubation (days) | Fledge (days) |
| late May | 1-25 | 1 | 11-12 | 17-21 |
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