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 NR    Oriental Cuckoo* Id (Atlas): 336
    Cuculus optatus

Description (10)
Image of Oriental Cuckoo
 

Other Names (World)
Oriental Cuckoo, Himalayan Cuckoo, Blyth's Cuckoo, Saturated Cuckoo, Hawk-cuckoo, Australian Cuckoo

Family
Cuculidae (Cuckoos)

Size
28 - 34 cm

First Described (Guide)
Gould, 1845

Derivation
Cu-cü'-lus - L., cuculus, cuckoo: sat'-ür-ä-tus - L., full

Abundance (Guide)
UC

Uncommon.

Habitat
Canopy or shrub layer of monsoon rainforest, vine-thickets, wet sclerophyll forest or open casuarina, acacia or eucalypt forest or woodland.

Range (Guide)
Australia (NB), Cambodia (P), China (mainland) (B) (P), Finland (B), Indonesia (NB) (P), Japan (B) (P), Kazakhstan (B), Kyrgyzstan (B), Laos (P), Malaysia (P), Micronesia [Federated States of] (NB), Mongolia (B), Myanmar (P), New Zealand (NB), North Korea (B), Palau (NB), Papua New Guinea (NB), Philippines (NB), Russia (Central Asian) (B), Russia (European) (B), Solomon Islands (NB), South Korea (B), Taiwan (China) (P), Tajikistan (B), Thailand (P), Vietnam (NB) (P).

Vagrant to USA.

Image of Range of Oriental Cuckoo
Breeds in Eurasia, migrating south in the northern autumn to Northern and eastern Australia, south to about Sydney, NSW.
 
Rarity Status
View Rarity Status Information

Population
Estimated population is unknown (2010).

Status NR
Secure.

For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Habits
Singly or in pairs, occasionally in small groups.

Food
Invertebrates, especially caterpillars.

Voice
Usually silent but may utter a whistled, 'kee-kee-kee', and a harsh, 'graak-graak-gak-ak-ak'.

Xeno-Canto Sound Files (more (140)...)

 
Oriental Cuckoo (Cuculus optatus) [XC485288]
     by Stanislas Wroza from Kabansky District, Buryatia, Russian Federation (call, song, gurgling call)

 
Oriental Cuckoo (Cuculus optatus) [XC286351]
     by Thijs Fijen from Rausu pass, Hokkaido, Japan (song)

Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia. Breeds in Eurasia.

J F M A M J J A S O N D
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


Nest
None. Egg(s) laid in that of the foster parents. The most common species are Phylloscopus warblers.

Eggs (Guide)
1; white or pale brown, with very small black or purple spots; long-oval; about 21 x 14 mm. Incubation is carried out by the species whose nest has been parasitised.

Subspecies
Cuculus saturatus (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Himalayan Cuckoo (Cuculus saturatus), Oriental Cuckoo (Cuculus optatus) and Sunda Cuckoo (Cuculus lepidus) following Payne (2005).

The following 4 subspecies are recognised:

  • optatus Gould, 1845   -  Australia, coastal northern Australia from the Kimberley Divide in the west through the northern Top End, northern and eastern Qld, and northern NSW.
  • saturatus Hodgson, 1843   -  Kashmir through southern Himalayas, Assam, northern and eastern Myanmar (including Shan States) and Thailand to southern China and Taiwan. Winters from Malaysia and Philippines south to Lesser Sundas, New Guinea and Australia. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Himalayan Cuckoo (Cuculus saturatus).
  • lepidus Muller, 1845   -  Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Lesser Sundas, east to Timor. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Sunda Cuckoo (Cuculus lepidus).
  • insulindae Hartert, 1912   -  Borneo.



References
See References.

The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9


Files:
JPG files for Oriental Cuckoo (Cuculus optatus) - 10 files


More Information

BirdLife International

For more information about the Oriental Cuckoo see... Show Articles BirdLife International Species Factsheet.


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