Little Cuckoo

Photo by Robert Scanlon
Photograhed in Peru.

Alternative name: Lesser Chestnut Cuckoo

Coccycua minuta

Identification

27 cm long and weighs 40 g. Mainly chestnut, grey lower belly, brown tail and white tips to the tail feathers. The bill is yellow and the iris is red. Immature birds are dark brown with a black bill and no white tail tips.

Distribution

Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Trinidad, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil.

Taxonomy

All authorities recognize subspecies minuta and gracilis; some additionally recognize panamensis, barinensis, and chaparensis.

This species has alternatively been placed in genus Piaya or genus Coccycua.

Habitat

Mangrove swamps, and scrubby woodland near water.

Behaviour

2 white eggs are laid in a deep cup nest in a tree or bamboo.

Diet includes insects.

Reference

1. Clements, James F. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2007. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
2. AOU checklist
3. SACC proposal

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Little Cuckoo. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 22 September 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Little_Cuckoo

External Links

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