Scientific Name: Coccyzus americanus
Status: C
Yellow-billed Cuckoos are medium-sized birds (26 to 30 cm or about 1 ft. in length) with long tails. They have uniform grayish-brown plumage on their head and back, and dull white underparts. Their tails are long with two rows of four to six large white circles on the underside. Their bills are short to medium in length, curved downward with a black upper mandible and a yellow or orange lower mandible. Yellow-billed cuckoos have four toes, the middle two point forward and the outer two point backward. Females are slightly larger than males. Juveniles are similar in appearance to adults, but have a less distinct undertail pattern, and have cinnamon brown wing coverts.
Yellow-billed Cuckoos primarily eat large insects including caterpillars, katydids, cicadas, grasshoppers and crickets. They also occasionally eat bird eggs, snails, small vertebrates such as frogs and lizards, along with some fruits and seeds. Parents feed their chicks regurgitated insects.
Habitat: Yellow-billed Cuckoos prefer open woodlands with clearings and a dense shrub layer. They are often found in woodlands near streams, rivers or lakes. In North America, their preferred habitats include abandoned farmland, old fruit orchards, shrubland and dense thickets.
Predators: Adults are killed by raptors, including Aplomado falcons and red-shouldered hawks. Nestlings and eggs are vulnerable to snakes such as the black racer, small mammals such as eastern chipmunks, and birds such as blue jays and common grackles.
Yellow-billed Cuckoos are host to a variety of parasites and they can often be nest parasites as well. Some parasitize other birds by laying eggs in their nests - these nests may belong to others of the same species or to black-billed cuckoos, American robins, gray catbirds or wood thrushes.
Populations have been declining in recent years due to habitat loss and fragmentation. Other threats to cuckoo populations include poisoning from pesticides and other environmental contaminants, and collision with towers and tall buildings during their nocturnal migration.
