Coccyzus erythropthalmus
Most birds are silenced by the arrival of storm systems, but when storms darken spring skies, the Black-billed Cuckoo abandons its normally quiet and shy behavior to vocalize with loud bursts from a shrubby thicket. In their dense, tangled habitat, cuckoos are heard more often than they are seen; one can only hope for a glimpse of a cuckoo as it flies hurriedly from one thicket to the next. In spite of their seeming reluctance to fly in their breeding territories, these cuckoos migrate great distances to the tropics for winter. The Black-billed Cuckoo does not sing like a cuckoo clock; that voice is from the Common Cuckoo of Europe and Asia. |
I.D.: Sexes similar: brown upperparts; white underparts; long, white-spotted tail; downcurved, dark bill; reddish eye ring. Size: L 12 in. (30 cm). Range: uncommon to rare summer resident and migrant in Grand Teton NP; rare migrant and summer resident elsewhere in the Rockies. Habitat: densely vegetated woodlands, shrubs and thickets; often associated with riparian regions; in lower elevations. Nesting: typically northeast of the Rockies; in a shrub or small tree; nest is made of twigs and lined with grass and other vegetation; occasionally lays its eggs in other birds' nests; pair normally incubates 2-3 eggs for up to 13 days. Feeding: gleans hairy caterpillars from leaves, branches and trunks; also eats other insects and occasionally berries. Voice: a fast cu-cu-cu or cu-cu-cu-cu-cu in summer. Similar Species: Mourning Dove: slender neck; peach-colored underparts. Yellow-billed Cuckoo: very rare in the Rockies; yellow bill; prominent white spots on the undertail; lacks the red eye ring. |
