Cuckoo

Discussions and information on all Southern African Birds
leachy
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Cuckoo

Post by leachy »

:-) :-) :-) :-)

The cuckoos are generally medium sized slender birds and almost all South Africa Cuckoos are brood parasites, meaning that they lay their eggs in the nests of other species. Most cuckoos will have a very specific “host” – for example, around big colonies of weaver nests this time of year, you will almost inevitably find a Diederik Cuckoo hanging around waiting for its chance to sneak into an unsuspecting nest. Interestingly, cuckoos will even go as far as “tailoring” the shape and colour of their eggs to match that of the host. The unsuspecting host will then raise the young cuckoo as if they were their own.

Their calls are all quite distinctive and often associated with their Afrikaans or colloquial names, for example, the Red-chested Cuckoo is known as a “Piet My Vrou” and that’s exactly what it sounds like when calling, a sound almost every South African recognizes. Others include the Klass’s Cuckoo, which has the Afrikaans name of “Meitjie” – again the name closely resembles its call, as does the Emerald Cuckoo, known in Afrikaans as the “Mooi Meisie”.

Cuckoos are a fascinating family of birds and notoriously frustrating for birders as you hear them a lot more than you see them, but be patient and keep an ear open for their calls, once you know the sound, you will find them a lot easier.

diderick cuckoo

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Flutterby
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Flutterby »

My one and only sighting of a Red-chested Cuckoo was in our very own garden in 2010. The youngster was sitting on our wall making a lot of noise and its adoptive mom (a Cape Robin-chat) was feeding it! :-0 Love the difference in size between mom and child! lol

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Amoli
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Amoli »

This Diederick first got rid of the goowee insides before enjoying this meal... lol

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Pretoriuskop
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Amoli
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Amoli »

Here are some images I took in Rietvlei during January this year.

I never knew there was a difference between the male and the female untill Flutts posted some pictures. O0

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Pretoriuskop
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Peter Connan
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Peter Connan »

Great timing!

I was getting worried that the Cuckoos were not coming back this year, but heard a Didie for the first time this morning.

Now just need to get a decent photo. So far, these rather poor eforts are all I have:

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Amoli
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Amoli »

I also saw a Jacobins for the first time yesterday ^Q^

As promised -

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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Flutterby »

I think these are the pics Amoli is referring to, taken at Rietvlei in December 2013. \O

Female Diderick

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Male Diderick

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Lisbeth
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Lisbeth »

Nice ones \O


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Amoli
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by Amoli »

Those are the pics Flutts... ^Q^ Beautiful. \O


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leachy
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Re: Cuckoo - Bird of the month - November 2014

Post by leachy »

:-) :-) :-) :-)

jacobin cuckoo

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