cuculiform
cuculiform, (order Cuculiformes), any member of a cosmopolitan group of birds containing two very distinct families, the cuckoos (Cuculidae) and the hoatzin (Opisthocomidae). Family Cuculidae is the much larger group, containing about 140 species of cuckoos, roadrunners, coucals, couas, malkohas, guiras, and anis; cuculids are found in the tropical and temperate zones of all the continents except Antarctica and on many oceanic islands. In contrast, family Opisthocomidae contains one species, found only in South America.
The cuckoos are an ancient group with uncertain phylogenetic affiliations and no living near relatives. The cuckoos are of unusual biological, especially ethological, interest because many species are brood parasites—they lay their eggs in the nests of other species, which then rear the young cuckoos. Other cuckoos make their own nests, in which they incubate their eggs and rear their young as do most birds, and still others (Crotophaga and Guira) build communal nests. Some cuckoos are among the few birds that feed extensively on hairy caterpillars.
This article provides a detailed overview of the Cuculidae. For more-detailed descriptions of the hoatzin, see galliform and hoatzin.
General features
The cuckoos range in size from the small glossy or emerald cuckoos of the genus Chrysococcyx, which are about 15 cm (6 inches) long, to the large ground cuckoos (Carpococcyx) and the larger species of coucals (Centropus), which reach nearly 90 cm (about 3 feet) in length after the often strikingly long tail is considered. Most cuckoos have fairly loose-webbed feathers, varying in colour from subdued browns, grays, olive, and black, to brilliant, iridescent greens and purples and bright yellow. The beak is of moderate length and often slightly downcurved.
The cuckoos include the arboreal “typical” cuckoos of both the Old World and the New World, the terrestrial roadrunners (Geococcyx) of southwestern United States and Mexico, and the more compact but also largely terrestrial coucals (Centropus) of Africa and Australasia.
Distribution
Although the family Cuculidae is distributed virtually worldwide in temperate and tropical regions, most of the subfamilies are restricted to one hemisphere or the other. Three—Cuculinae, Centropodinae, and Couinae—are limited in distribution to the Old World; the subfamily Crotophaginae is wholly New World; the Neomorphinae is mostly New World, with one genus in Southeast Asia; and the sixth subfamily, Phaenicophaeinae, is represented in the tropics of both hemispheres. Many cuckoo genera are peculiar to certain parts of the world; others are cosmopolitan. Three genera—Rhamphomantis, Caliechthrus, and Microdynamis, for example—are known only from New Guinea; Dasylophus and Lepidogrammus occur only in the Philippine Islands; and Saurothera (lizard cuckoos) are found only in the West Indies. Some other genera are wide-ranging: the typical cuckoos of the genus Cuculus are found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia; the small, brightly coloured Chrysococcyx species occur in Africa, Asia, Australia, and some Pacific islands; and the coucals, Centropus, live in Africa, Asia, Australia, and adjacent islands.
Most cuckoos are solitary, often furtive birds that are inconspicuous even when relatively common. They do not form large flocks or even—except for the communal nesting anis (Crotophaga)—small parties.
Natural history
Habitat utilization
As a group, cuckoos are forest birds, often inhabiting dense thickets that may make them difficult to observe. Some species, such as many of the genus Cuculus, inhabit rather open woodland. The guira (Guira guira) of South America and many members of the Old World genera Clamator and Chrysococcyx are found in open savanna (grassland), but only where trees are present. The roadrunners live in open scrub and cactus desert, often in the absence of any large vegetation.
Food habits
Cuckoos are largely insectivorous, preying mostly on crawling insects. Orthoptera (grasshoppers, locusts, and mantids) are often taken. The greater, or North American, roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) is reported to take flying grasshoppers by leaping after them from the ground. The larger cuckoos (such as the lizard cuckoos, roadrunners, and coucals) take substantial numbers of lizards, snakes, and other small vertebrates, sometimes including birds. Among the Cuculidae, only the Madagascar couas (Coua) are reported to eat some fruit.
Vocalizations
Compared with other birds generally, cuckoos must be considered a highly vocal group. A variety of songs, contact calls, and alarm notes are known for most species, some melodious and many harsh and discordant. The “song,” associated with territorial assertion and courtship, is usually characterized by the repetition of loud, short notes, often on a descending scale or with a downward break in the middle. The individual syllables have variously been described as whistling, piping, cooing, tooting, laughing, grating, and clicking, depending on the species. The familiar clear, two-note call of the common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) of Europe, Asia, and Africa is uttered by the male alone, the female giving a low bubbling call; apparently in most other species of cuckoos as well, the song is given by the male alone.
In addition to vocal sounds, at least one cuckoo, the North American, or greater, roadrunner, makes nonvocal sounds, clacking the mandibles to produce a rattling noise.
Courtship behaviour
Except for features of parasitism, the behaviour of cuckoos is one of the least-studied aspects of their natural history. A few species, in several subfamilies, have been observed closely, and some generalizations are possible. In territorial advertisement and in courtship, the singing male (in both parasitic and nonparasitic cuckoos) may posture, spreading the tail feathers, which are white-tipped in most species, and drooping the wings. Courtship feeding of the female by the male has been observed in several species.