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Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) Alternate name(s): "Cuckoo", "European Cuckoo" German name(s): "Kuckuck" Size: 32-36 cm; wing span 55-65 cm Body mass: 114-130 g (male), 106-112 g (female) Wing loading [g/cm2]: ca. 0.25

Europe: Family Group 13 Family Group 13 Table Common Cuckoo Great Spotted Cuckoo Oriental Cuckoo Little Owl Tawny Owl Short-eared Owl Long-eared Owl Eurasian Eagle Owl Barn Owl European Nightjar Red-necked Nightjar Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Common Cuckoos are an about dove-sized brood-parasitic species. Their plumage is dimorphic, i.e. males and females are different. Males are mostly grey, with the bold black-and-white barring typical of cuckoos on belly and undertail coverts. The vent is grey. Head, neck and breast are slate-grey, while the wings are dark-grey. The long and broad tail is dark-grey, with white outer edge barring. The eye-rings, irises and feet are yellow. The slender, slightly downcurved bill is grey, with a yellow base. Females can have either grey morphology, which is similar to the males', but with an inconspicuous rusty-buff tinge mostly on the chest, or rufous morphology, which is rufous where grey-morphology Common Cuckoos are grey and possibly all-dark plumage where grey-morphology Common Cuckoos are barred. Juveniles are barred all over (including head, neck and chest) in creamy-brown colours (underparts) and brown-black (upperparts), rather than grey-white. They are most easily recognized by a white patch on the nape of the neck.

Taxonomy, classification See Common Cuckoo at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Common Cuckoo is available HERE . Common Cuckoos are a strongly migratory Eurasian species with four recognised races that populate large parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. They are also found in Asia Minor, parts of the Middle East and on the Arabian peninsula. In Europe only two races of Common Cuckoos are found. Nominate race "canorus" breeds in all of Europe (except Iberia, see below), from the British Isles to the Ural Mountains (other races go beyond), and from the northern Mediterranean to northern Scandinavia. Some also breed in near-coastal northern Africa (mostly the Atlas Mountains). In winter they all migrate to Africa (where they do not stay North of the Sahara desert, but move on farther South). Race "bangsi" breeds in Iberia (Spain/Portugal), the Balearic Islands and northern Africa and spends the northern winter in Africa.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "canorus" D. Wilczynska reports spotting a Common Cuckoo, nominate race "canorus", near Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, in May 2016. A. Sarok reports finding Common Cuckoos, race "canorus", in Vojvodina, Serbia, in the timeframe 2010-2024. In the past we regularly heard Common Cuckoos, race "canorus", in forests and woodlands in various parts of Germany. Race "bangsi" J. Pires reports spotting a Common Cuckoo, race "bangsi", in Mora, Evora, Portugal, in May 2013. Another was found in April 2025.

Photos

Race "canorus"

ADULT

MALE

Near-frontal view of a male Common Cuckoo looking sideways; note the solid-grey chest
(photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a male Common Cuckoo spreading its wings (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a male Common Cuckoo (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]

Lateral view of a male Common Cuckoo (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a male Common Cuckoo looking towards the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

FEMALE

Rufous morphology

Lateral view of a rufous morph female Common Cuckoo (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Near-dorsal view of a rufous morph female Common Cuckoo (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Race "bangsi"

ADULT

MALE

Distant lateral view of a male Common Cuckoo; note the grey upper chest (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Santa Comba da Vilarica, Vila Flor, Braganca, Portugal, April 2025]

FEMALE

Grey morphology

Frontal view of a female Common Cuckoo; note the brownish barring on the upper chest (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, May 2013]

Near-dorsal view of a female Common Cuckoo (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, May 2013]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a Common Cuckoo in flight; the rufous tinges may suggest that this is a female
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Moita do Ribatejo, Tejo estuary, Portugal, April 2019]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a Common Cuckoo in flight; the rufous tinges may suggest that this is a female
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Moita do Ribatejo, Tejo estuary, Portugal, April 2019]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Dorsal view of a juvenile Common Cuckoo in flight, wings down; note the white patch at the nape of the neck
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Portugal, August 2019]

Dorsal view of a juvenile Common Cuckoo in flight, wings up (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Portugal, August 2019]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Migratory

Elementary unit: Solitary

Food, Diet

Common Cuckoos feed on various types of insects. The photos below show that Common Cuckoos have a liking for hairy caterpillars.

Lateral view of a male Common Cuckoo that has caught a caterpillar (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, May 2016]

Female Common Cuckoo beating to death a caterpillar (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, May 2013]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

cuckoo_dw_20160503.m4a	canorus (Poland)	Contact calls (male)	© DW
cuckoo_jp_20200418_2.m4a	bangsi (Portugal)	Contact calls (male)	© JP
cuckoo_jp_20200418.m4a	bangsi (Portugal)	Contact calls (male)	© JP

More Common Cuckoo sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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