Squirrel Cuckoo
Encyclopedia
The Squirrel Cuckoo, Piaya cayana, is a large and active species of cuckoo
found in wooded habitats from northwestern Mexico
to northern Argentina
and Uruguay
, and on Trinidad
.
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This large and extremely long-tailed cuckoo is 40.5–50 cm (15.9–19.7 in) long and weighs 95–120 g (3.4–4.2 oz). The adult has mainly chestnut upperparts and head, becoming paler on the throat. The lower breast is grey and the belly is blackish. The central tail feathers are rufous, but the outer are black with white tips. The bill is yellow and the iris is red. Immature birds have a grey bill and eyering, brown iris, and less white in the tail. It resembles the Little Cuckoo
, but that species is smaller and has a darker throat
There are a number of subspecies
with minor plumage
variations. For example, P. c. mehleri, one of the South America
n subspecies, has mainly brown (not black) outer tail feathers. Additionally, the subspecies from Mexico
, Central America
, and northern and western South America have a yellow eye-ring, but this is red in the remaining part of South America.
It makes explosive kip! and kip! weeuu calls, and the song is a whistled wheep wheep wheep wheep.
name derives from its habit of running along branches and leaping from branch to branch like a squirrel
. It normally flies only short distances, mainly gliding with an occasional flap.
It feeds on large insect
s such as cicada
s, wasp
s and caterpillar
s (including those with stinging hairs or spines), and occasionally spider
s and small lizard
s, rarely taking fruit. Its static prey is typically taken off the foliage with a quick lunge, but wasps may be picked out of the air. Squirrel Cuckoos are often observed to forage peacefully alongside small mammals such as Common Marmoset
s (Callithrix jacchus) during the dry season
. In particular, they can be seen to attend army ant
columns together, picking off prey flushed by the ants, and occasionally will join mixed-species feeding flock
s.
The nest is a cup of leaves on a twig foundation, hidden in dense vegetation 1–12 m (3.3–39.4 ft) high in a tree. The female lays two white eggs.
The Squirrel Cuckoo is plentiful in most of its range and appears to be quite tolerant of human disturbance, as long as wooded land remains. Compared to many cuckoos in the world, it is relatively bold and conspicuous, although it most often encountered skulking about within vegetation. Due to its wide range, it is considered a species of Least Concern by the IUCN.
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...
found in wooded habitats from northwestern Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
to northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, and on Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
.
Description
Little Cuckoo
The Little Cuckoo is a species of bird in the cuckoo family from South America and Panama. It was formerly placed in the genus Piaya but a monotypic genus Coccycua was once erected for it...
, but that species is smaller and has a darker throat
There are a number of subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
with minor plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
variations. For example, P. c. mehleri, one of the South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n subspecies, has mainly brown (not black) outer tail feathers. Additionally, the subspecies from Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
, and northern and western South America have a yellow eye-ring, but this is red in the remaining part of South America.
It makes explosive kip! and kip! weeuu calls, and the song is a whistled wheep wheep wheep wheep.
Habitat and behavior
The Squirrel Cuckoo is found in woodland canopy and edges, second growth, hedges and semi-open habitats from sea level to as high as 2500 metres (8,202.1 ft), although it is uncommon above 1200 metres (3,937 ft). This species’ EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
name derives from its habit of running along branches and leaping from branch to branch like a squirrel
Squirrel
Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...
. It normally flies only short distances, mainly gliding with an occasional flap.
It feeds on large insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s such as cicada
Cicada
A cicada is an insect of the order Hemiptera, suborder Auchenorrhyncha , in the superfamily Cicadoidea, with large eyes wide apart on the head and usually transparent, well-veined wings. There are about 2,500 species of cicada around the world, and many of them remain unclassified...
s, wasp
Wasp
The term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
s and caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s (including those with stinging hairs or spines), and occasionally spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s and small lizard
Lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
s, rarely taking fruit. Its static prey is typically taken off the foliage with a quick lunge, but wasps may be picked out of the air. Squirrel Cuckoos are often observed to forage peacefully alongside small mammals such as Common Marmoset
Common Marmoset
The common marmoset is a New World monkey. It originally lived on the Northeastern coast of Brazil, in the states of Piaui, Paraiba, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Alagoas and Bahia...
s (Callithrix jacchus) during the dry season
Dry season
The dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
. In particular, they can be seen to attend army ant
Army ant
The name army ant is applied to over 200 ant species, in different lineages, due to their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", in which huge numbers of ants forage simultaneously over a certain area, attacking prey en masse.Another shared feature is that, unlike most ant...
columns together, picking off prey flushed by the ants, and occasionally will join mixed-species feeding flock
Mixed-species feeding flock
A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species, that join each other and move together while foraging...
s.
The nest is a cup of leaves on a twig foundation, hidden in dense vegetation 1–12 m (3.3–39.4 ft) high in a tree. The female lays two white eggs.
The Squirrel Cuckoo is plentiful in most of its range and appears to be quite tolerant of human disturbance, as long as wooded land remains. Compared to many cuckoos in the world, it is relatively bold and conspicuous, although it most often encountered skulking about within vegetation. Due to its wide range, it is considered a species of Least Concern by the IUCN.