Coccyzus melacoryphus
The Dark-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus melacoryphus) is a slender, medium-sized cuckoo of the New World, typically measuring 28-30 cm in length and weighing 40-50 grams. Its plumage is characterized by brownish-grey upperparts, a whitish to pale buff underside, and a long tail tipped with white on the outer rectrices, though these tips are often concealed. A distinctive feature is its stout, curved bill, which is predominantly black or dark horn-colored, sometimes with a paler base to the lower man...
This adaptable cuckoo thrives in open woodlands, secondary growth, gallery forests, savannas, scrublands, cerrado, and caatinga, often near water sources. It is found primarily in lowlands, though it can occur up to elevations of 1500 meters.
Its diet primarily consists of large insects such as caterpillars (including hairy ones), grasshoppers, cicadas, beetles, and mantises, gleaned from foliage. Occasionally, small vertebrates like lizards and some fruits may be consumed.
Typically a solitary and somewhat secretive bird, the Dark-billed Cuckoo is primarily diurnal, though it often sits quietly and can be surprisingly difficult to observe. Its foraging strategy involves gleaning large insects, especially caterpillars, from foliage with precise movements, occasional...
The Dark-billed Cuckoo boasts a broad distribution across South America. Its primary breeding range extends through eastern and central Brazil, eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, northern Argentina, and Uruguay. During the austral winter, migratory populations from the southern parts of its range move no...
Least Concern
- The Dark-billed Cuckoo is one of the few New World cuckoos that are not brood parasites, diligently raising its own offspring. - Its nesting cycle is exceptionally fast, with an incubation period of only 9-11 days and chicks fledging in as little as 7-9 days. - The species is renowned for its a...