Cuckoos have elegant shapes; beaks almost as long as the head, compressed, and slightly curved; the tail rather long and rounded.(Figuier, 1869).

Barbet

Cuckoos have elegant shapes; beaks almost as long as the head, compressed, and slightly curved; the…

Cuckoos have elegant shapes; beaks almost as long as the head, compressed, and slightly curved; the tail rather long and rounded.(Figuier, 1869).

Cuckoo

Cuckoos have elegant shapes; beaks almost as long as the head, compressed, and slightly curved; the…

The cuckoo is a member of the Cuculidae family. They have slender bodies, with long tails and downturned beaks.

Cuckoo

The cuckoo is a member of the Cuculidae family. They have slender bodies, with long tails and downturned…

"Cuculus canorus the familiar Cuckoo of Britain and nearly all the Old World, is greyish-brown above and on the throat, the lower parts being white barred with dusky, and the wings and tail shewing a few white markings. A chestnut-brown or "hepatic" phase is sometimes met with. The young are brown mottled with white on the nape."

Cuckoo

"Cuculus canorus the familiar Cuckoo of Britain and nearly all the Old World, is greyish-brown above…

An illustration of a cuckoo with a butterfly in its beak.

Cuckoo with Butterfly in Beak

An illustration of a cuckoo with a butterfly in its beak.

Averaging about twelve and a half inches in length, the black-billed cuckoo resembles the yellow-billed cuckoo, and inhabits the same regions.

Black-billed cuckoo

Averaging about twelve and a half inches in length, the black-billed cuckoo resembles the yellow-billed…

A pair of European cuckoos roosting on a branch over a river.

European cuckoo

A pair of European cuckoos roosting on a branch over a river.

The foot of a Cuckoo, a bird belonging to the Scansores order. Scansores is an order of birds, popularly known as climbing birds. The most important of the families are the cuckoos, the woodpeckers and wry-necks, the parrots, the toucans, the trogons, the barbets, and the plantain-eaters.

Foot of a Cuckoo

The foot of a Cuckoo, a bird belonging to the Scansores order. Scansores is an order of birds, popularly…

The great spotted cuckoo divides its time between North Africa and Southern Europe, laying its eggs in the nests of other birds for them to rear its offspring as their own.

Great spotted cuckoo

The great spotted cuckoo divides its time between North Africa and Southern Europe, laying its eggs…

The head of a Cuckoo, a bird belonging to the Scansores order. Scansores is an order of birds, popularly known as climbing birds. The most important of the families are the cuckoos, the woodpeckers and wry-necks, the parrots, the toucans, the trogons, the barbets, and the plantain-eaters.

Head of Cuckoo

The head of a Cuckoo, a bird belonging to the Scansores order. Scansores is an order of birds, popularly…

"The plumage is brownish, with white margins to the feathers and a purple tinge on the rufous-mottled head, neck, and breast; the back is greener, the tail more lilac, the abdomen white, the bare orbits blue and red. With its long stout legs this species covers the ground very quickly, running with outstretched neck, elevated crest, slightly expanded wings, and jerking tail, or springing into trees and taking brief flights." A. H. Evans, 1900

Two Radiated Ground Cuckoo, One with an Insect in its Mouth, the Other in a Tree Branch in a wooded Area

"The plumage is brownish, with white margins to the feathers and a purple tinge on the rufous-mottled…

Also known as the common American cuckoo, the yellow-billed cuckoo subsists on a diet of hairy caterpillars, cock-chafers, and the eggs of small birds.

Yellow-billed cuckoo

Also known as the common American cuckoo, the yellow-billed cuckoo subsists on a diet of hairy caterpillars,…

"Twelve to sixteen inches long; it feeds on curstaceous animals; spawns in May or June; it is esteemed for food, taken in deep water with a trawl-net, affords excellent amusement in fishing with hand-lines; common in European and American waters" — Goodrich, 1859

Red Gurnard

"Twelve to sixteen inches long; it feeds on curstaceous animals; spawns in May or June; it is esteemed…

An assortment of scansores sitting in a tree.

Scansores

An assortment of scansores sitting in a tree.

Also known as the cuckoo's mate, the wry-neck feeds on ants and elder-berries.

Wryneck

Also known as the cuckoo's mate, the wry-neck feeds on ants and elder-berries.