• Finnish: hokea

The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos (family Musophagidae, sometimes treated as a separate order, Musophagiformes). Some zoologists and ecologists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute.

The cuckoo family, in addition to those species named as such, also includes the roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separated as distinct families, the Centropodidae and Crotophagidae respectively.

Morphology

Cuckoos are birds of variable size with slender bodies, long tails and strong legs. The feet are zygodactyl (the two inner toes pointed forward and the two outer backward). Most cuckoos reside in forests, but some prefer more open country. Most are insect eaters, with hairy caterpillars, which are avoided by many birds, being a specialty. Cuckoos range in size from the Little Bronze Cuckoo, at 17 g and 15 cm (6 inches), to the Channel-billed Cuckoo, at 630 g (1.4 lbs) and 63 cm (25 inches).

Cuckoo genera differ in the number of primary wing feathers as below.

• Phaenicophaeus, Coccyzus, Piaya - 9
• Cuculus - 9 or 10
• Pachycoccyx, Clamator levaillantii, Centropus - 10
• Microdynamis, Eudynamys,Clamator glandarius - 11
• Some coucals - 12
• Scythrops novaehollandiae - 13

Behaviour

Breeding

About 56 of the Old World species and 3 of the New World species are brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other birds. The best-known example is the European Common Cuckoo. The cuckoo egg hatches earlier than the host's, and the cuckoo chick grows faster; in most cases the chick evicts the eggs or young of the host species. The chick has no time to learn this behavior, so it must be an instinct passed on genetically. The mother still feeds the cuckoo chick as if it were her own, the chick's open mouth serving as a sign stimulus for the host to feed it.

Female parasitic cuckoos specialize and lay eggs that closely resemble the eggs of their chosen host. This also seems to have been aided by natural selection, as some birds are able to distinguish cuckoo eggs from their own, leading to those eggs least like the host's being thrown out of the nest. They will also take a wide range of other insects and animal prey. The lizard-cuckoos of the Caribbean have, in the relative absence of birds of prey, specialised in taking lizards. Larger, ground types such as coucals and roadrunners also feed variously on snakes, lizards, small rodents, and other birds, which they bludgeon with their strong bills.

Several koels, couas and the Channel-billed Cuckoo feed mainly on fruit, but they are not exclusively frugivores. The parasitic koels and Channel-billed Cuckoo in particular consume mainly fruit when raised by fruigivore hosts such as the Figbird and Pied Currawong. Other species will occasionally take fruit as well.

Calls

Cuckoos are often highly secretive and in many cases best known for their wide repertoire of calls. Calls are usually relatively simple, resembling whistles, flutes, or hiccups. The cuckoo family gets its English and scientific names from the call of the Common Cuckoo, which is also familiar from cuckoo clocks. Some of the names of other species and genera are also derived from their calls, for example the koels of Asia and Australasia. In most cuckoos the calls are distinctive to particular species, and are useful for identification. Several cryptic species have been identified on the basis of their calls. Although cuckoos are diurnal, many species call at night.

Systematics

Unassigned

• Genus Dynamopterus - fossil (Late Eocene/Early Oligocene of Caylus, France)
• Genus Cursoricoccyx - fossil (Early Miocene of Logan County, USA) - Neomorphinae?
• Cuculidae gen. et sp. indet. - fossil (Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, USA: Olson 1985)
• Genus Nannococcyx - St Helena Cuckoo (extinct)

Subfamily Cuculinae

Brood-parasitic cuckoos.

• Genus Eocuculus - fossil (Late Eocene of Teller County, USA)
• Genus Clamator (4 species)
• Genus Pachycoccyx
  • Thick-billed Cuckoo, Pachycoccyx audeberti
• Genus Cuculus - typical cuckoos (some 15 species)
• Genus Cercococcyx - long-tailed cuckoos
  • Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoo, Cercococcyx mechowi
  • Olive Long-tailed Cuckoo, Cercococcyx olivinus
  • Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Cercococcyx montanus
• Genus Cacomantis
  • Banded Bay Cuckoo, Cacomantis sonneratii
  • Plaintive Cuckoo, Cacomantis merulinus
  • Rusty-breasted Cuckoo, Cacomantis sepulcralis
  • Grey-bellied Cuckoo, Cacomantis passerinus
  • Brush Cuckoo, Cacomantis variolosus
  • Moluccan Cuckoo, Cacomantis heinrichi
  • Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo, Cacomantis castaneiventris
  • Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Cacomantis flabelliformis
• Genus Chrysococcyx - bronze cuckoos
  • Black-eared Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx osculans
  • Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx basalis
  • Shining Bronze Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx lucidus
  • Rufous-throated Bronze Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx ruficollis
  • White-eared Bronze Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx meyeri
  • Little Bronze Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx minutillus
  • Asian Emerald Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx maculatus
  • Violet Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx xanthorhynchus
  • Yellow-throated Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx flavigularis
  • Klaas' Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx klaas
  • African Emerald Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx cupreus
  • Dideric Cuckoo, Chrysococcyx caprius
• Genus Rhamphomantis
  • Long-billed Cuckoo, Rhamphomantis megarhynchus
• Genus Surniculus - drongo-cuckoos
  • Asian Drongo-cuckoo, Surniculus lugubris
  • Philippine Drongo-cuckoo, Surniculus velutinus
• Genus Caliechthrus
  • White-crowned Koel, Caliechthrus leucolophus
• Genus Microdynamis
  • Dwarf Koel, Microdynamis parva
• Genus Eudynamys - true koels
  • Black-billed Koel, Eudynamys melanorhynchus
  • Asian Koel, Eudynamys scolopaceus
  • Australian Koel, Eudynamys cyanocephalus
  • Long-tailed Koel, Eudynamys taitensis
  • Henderson Island Koel, Eudynamis cf. taitensis - prehistoric
• Genus Scythrops
  • Channel-billed Cuckoo, Scythrops novaehollandiae

Subfamily Phaenicophaeinae

Malkohas and couas.

• Genus Ceuthmochares
  • Yellowbill, Ceuthmochares aereus
• Genus Phaenicophaeus - malkohas (12 species)
• Genus Carpococcyx - ground-cuckoos
  • Sumatran Ground-cuckoo, Carpococcyx viridis
  • Bornean Ground-cuckoo, Carpococcyx radiatus
  • Coral-billed Ground-cuckoo, Carpococcyx renauldi
• Genus Coua - couas (9 living species, 1 recently extinct)

Subfamily Coccyzinae

American cuckoos.

• Genus Coccyzus - includes Saurothera and Hyetornis, and possibly distinct Micrococcyx (13+2 species)
• Genus Piaya - includes possibly distinct Coccycua (2+1 species)

Subfamily Neomorphinae

Typical ground-cuckoos.

• Genus Neococcyx - fossil (Early Oligocene of C North America)
• Genus Tapera - Striped Cuckoo
• Genus Dromococcyx
  • Pheasant Cuckoo, Dromococcyx phasianellus
  • Pavonine Cuckoo, Dromococcyx pavoninus
• Genus Morococcyx
  • Lesser Ground-cuckoo, Morococcyx erythropygus
• Genus Geococcyx - roadrunners (2 species)
• Genus Neomorphus
  • Scaled Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus squamiger
  • Rufous-vented Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus geoffroyi
    • Bahía Rufous-vented Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus geoffroyi maximiliani - extinct (mid-20th century)
  • Banded Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus radiolosus
  • Rufous-winged Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus rufipennis
  • Red-billed Ground-cuckoo, Neomorphus pucheranii

Subfamily Centropodinae

Coucals.

• Genus Centropus (some 30 species)

Subfamily Crotophaginae

Anis.

• Genus Crotophaga - true anis (3 species)
• Genus Guira - Guira Cuckoo

References

• Feduccia, Alan (1996): The Origin and Evolution of Birds. Yale University Press, New Haven. ISBN 0-300-06460-8

• Olson, Storrs L. (1985): Section VII.C. Cuculidae. In: Farner, D.S.; King, J.R. & Parkes, Kenneth C. (eds.): Avian Biology 8: 110-111. Academic Press, New York.

External links

• Cuckoo sounds from the Neotropics on xeno-canto.org

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