Cuculus gularis
The African Cuckoo (Cuculus gularis) is a medium-sized, striking intra-African migrant, measuring approximately 30-33 cm (12-13 inches) in length with a slender build. Adults are characterized by slate-grey upperparts, a white throat, breast, and belly, with distinctive fine grey barring on the flanks and sometimes across the upper breast. A key field mark is its bright yellow lower mandible, contrasting with a dark upper mandible, complemented by a prominent yellow orbital ring around a dark...
Found in a variety of open woodlands, savannas, acacia scrub, and riparian forests across sub-Saharan Africa, typically at lower to mid-elevations.
Primarily insectivorous, specializing in a diet of hairy caterpillars, which many other birds avoid, but also consumes a variety of other insects such as beetles, grasshoppers, and termites, caught by gleaning or in flight.
The African Cuckoo is a largely solitary and diurnal species, often detected more by its characteristic vocalizations than by sight due to its generally secretive nature. It primarily forages by gleaning insects from foliage or catching them in aerial pursuit, moving stealthily through the canopy...
The African Cuckoo has a widespread distribution across sub-Saharan Africa, encompassing a broad range of habitats from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east, and south through parts of Southern Africa. Its breeding range includes West, Central, and East Africa, often associated with the on...
Least Concern
- The African Cuckoo is a notorious brood parasite, laying its eggs exclusively in the nests of other bird species, primarily shrikes, rather than building its own nest. - Its diet uniquely includes many hairy caterpillars that are toxic or unpalatable to most other bird species. - The male's dis...