Common Cuckoo
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Cuculiformes Family: Cuculidae Genus: Cuculus Species: C. canorus
Binomial name
Cuculus canorus (Linnaeus, 1758)

The Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis, the coucals, and the Hoatzin. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1260x834, 53 KB) Cuculus canorus, http://www. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ... Image File history File links Status_iucn3. ... Least Concern (LC) is an IUCN category assigned to species or lower taxa which do not qualify for any other category. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... Animalia redirects here. ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... “Aves” redirects here. ... Families Musophagidae Cuculidae Opisthocomidae The near passerine bird order Cuculiformes traditionally included three families as below: Order Cuculiformes Family Musophagidae: turacos and allies Family Cuculidae: cuckoos Family Opisthocomidae: Hoatzin However, the taxonomy of this group is now controversial. ... Genera See text. ... Binomial name Cuculus micropterus Gould, 1837 The Indian Cuckoo, Cuculus micropterus, is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis, and the Hoatzin. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as  , (May 23, 1707[1] – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[2] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ... 1758 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Genera See text. ... “Aves” redirects here. ... Species The roadrunners are two species of bird in the genus Geococcyx of the cuckoo family, Cuculidae, native to North and Central America. ... The Anis are the three species of near-passerine birds in the genus Crotophaga of the cuckoo family. ... A coucal is one of 28 species of birds in the cuckoo family. ... Binomial name Ophisthocomus hoazin (Muller, 1776) The Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin) is an odd species of tropical bird which is found in the swamps associated with the Amazon and Orinoco rivers of South America. ...

The cuckoo group gets its English and scientific names from the call of the male Common Cuckoo, usually given from an open perch, goo-ko. The female has a loud bubbling call.

The cuckoo is a widespread summer migrant to Europe and Asia, and winters in Africa. It is a brood parasite, which lays its eggs in the nests of other bird species, particularly of Dunnocks, Meadow Pipits, and Reed Warblers. Flock of Barnacle Geese during autumn migration Many species of birds undertake seasonal journeys of various lengths, a phenomenon known as Bird migration. ... This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... A Common Cuckoo being raised by a Reed Warbler. ... Binomial name Prunella modularis (Linnaeus, 1758) The Dunnock, Prunella modularis, is a small passerine bird found throughout temperate Europe and into Asia. ... Binomial name Anthus pratensis (Linnaeus, 1758) The Meadow Pipit, Anthus pratensis, is a small passerine bird which breeds in much of the northern half of Europe and Asia. ... Binomial name Acrocephalus scirpaceus (Hermann, 1804) The Eurasian Reed Warbler, or just Reed Warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus, is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. ...

This cuckoo is a greyish bird with a slender body, long tail and strong legs. The females only are sometimes brown, the “hepatic” phase. It looks like a small bird of prey in flight, although the wings stay below the horizontal. Its food is insects, with hairy caterpillars, which are distasteful to many birds, being a speciality. It is a bird of open land. Orders Accipitriformes     Cathartidae     Pandionidae     Accipitridae     Sagittariidae Falconiformes     Falconidae A bird of prey or raptor is a bird that hunts its food, especially one that preys on mammals or other birds. ... Orders See taxonomy Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species—more than all other animal groups combined. ... Caterpillar of the Emperor Gum Moth A caterpillar is the larval form of a lepidopteran (a member of the insect order comprised of butterflies and moths). ...

Brood parasite behaviour

Reed warbler feeding a common cuckoo chick

Common Cuckoo

An ideal breeding habitat for Cuckoos is where there are reed beds and trees. An individual female Cuckoo's territory will contain up to about 20 Reed Warbler's nests. Female Cuckoos spend a long time watching over the reed beds in their territory from the trees, and watch the behaviour of the Reed Warblers as they build their nests and start their broods. The female Cuckoo has to time her egg laying to just when the reed warblers start to lay eggs. It is not known how the hen cuckoo gets the timing right, as she cannot see the Reed Warblers' eggs from the trees, but it is likely that it is from the behaviour of warblers. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (446x628, 67 KB) From the Norsk language wiki. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (446x628, 67 KB) From the Norsk language wiki. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1280x960, 312 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Common Cuckoo Cuculus Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1280x960, 312 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Common Cuckoo Cuculus Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used... Binomial name Acrocephalus scirpaceus (Hermann, 1804) The Eurasian Reed Warbler, or just Reed Warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus, is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. ...

At the appropriate moment the hen Cuckoo flies down to the reed warblers' nest, pushes one Reed Warbler egg out of the nest, lays an egg and flies off. The whole process is achieved in only about 10 seconds. At 14 days old, the Cuckoo chicks are about 3 times the size of the adult Reed Warblers. The numerous and rapid hunger calls of the single cuckoo chick, and to a lesser extent its coloured gape, encourage the host parents to bring more food. Cuckoo chicks fledge after about 20 -21 days after hatching, which is about twice as long as for Reed Warblers. If the hen cuckoo is out-of-phase with a clutch of Reed Warbler eggs, she will eat them all so that the hosts are forced to start another brood.

Cuckoo chicks methodically evict all host progeny from host nests. It is a much larger bird than its hosts, and needs to monopolise the food supplied by the parents. The Cuckoo chick will roll the other eggs out of the nest by pushing them with its back over the edge. If the Reed Warbler's eggs hatch before the Cuckoo's egg, the Cuckoo chick will push the other chicks out of the nest in a similar way. Once the Reed Warbler chicks are out of the nest, the parents completely ignore them.

The combination of behaviour and anatomical adaptation of the common cuckoo was first described by Edward Jenner, who was elected as Fellow of the Royal Society in 1788 for this work. This was well before he invented vaccination. Portrait of Edward Jenner Edward Jenner, FRS, (May 17, 1749 – January 26, 1823) was an English country doctor who studied nature and his natural surroundings from childhood and practiced medicine in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, England. ... The premises of The Royal Society in London (first four properties only). ... Vaccination is the process of administering weakened or dead pathogens to a healthy person or animal, with the intent of conferring immunity against a targeted form of a related disease agent. ...

Egg colour

Female Cuckoos are divided into gentes, that is populations favouring a particular host species' nest and laying eggs which match those of that species in colour and pattern. The colour pattern is inherited from the female only, suggesting that it is carried on the sex-determining W chromosome (females are WZ, males ZZ). It is notable that most non-parasitic cuckoos lay white eggs, like most non-passerines other than ground nesters. The exception is in the case of the Dunnock, where the Cuckoo's egg has no resemblance to its hosts' blue eggs. This is thought to be because the Dunnock is a recent host, and has not yet acquired the ability to distinguish eggs. Male Cuckoos breed with females without regard to gens. This results in gene flow between the gentes and maintains a common gene pool for the species (except for the genes on the W chromosome). In most birds and reptiles, an egg (Latin ovum) is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum. ...

Trivia

• In England, hearing the call of the Cuckoo is regarded as the first harbinger of spring, and The Times newspaper notoriously features correspondence every year reporting the first calls, usually around 14 April. The same thing happens in Asturias where numerous proverbs talk about the Cuckoo as a herald of spring, and where the local newspapers talk about it every year.
• In Russia, there's a popular belief that a cuckoo can predict how many more years a person will live. If a person hears a cuckoo in the woods, he or she usually asks "Cuckoo, cuckoo, how long will I live?". It is believed that a person will live as many years as a cuckoo cuckooed.
• In a similar way, the same beliefs are found in the traditional culture of Asturias, where people asks the cuckoo about their wedding day or how many years one will live, saying rhyming magical prayers like: "Cuquiellu, barbiellu, barbes d'escoba: ¿Cuántos años hai d'equí a la mio boda?" ("Cuckoo, cuckoo, beard of a broom, when will I get married?") and "Cuquiellu marmiellu, rau de perru, ¿Cuántos años hai d'equí al mio entierru?" ("Cuckoo, cuckoo, tail of a dog, how long will I live?")
• The word "cuckold" derives from the Cuckoo's practice of tricking other birds into raising its young.

The Times is a national newspaper published daily in the United Kingdom since 1785, and under its current name since 1788. ... April 14 is the 104th day of the year (105th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 261 days remaining. ... Anthem: Asturias, patria querida Capital Oviedo Official language(s) Spanish; Asturian have special status Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 10th  10,604 km²  2. ... Anthem: Asturias, patria querida Capital Oviedo Official language(s) Spanish; Asturian have special status Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 10th  10,604 km²  2. ... A cuckold is a married man whose wife has sex with other men. ...

References

• BirdLife International (2004). Cuculus canorus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
• BBC/OU. Audio CD. The Rules of Life. 2005.