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Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Coccyzus americanus
Audubon Illustration
John James Audubon, Birds of America (1827-1838). Public domain.
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Showing primary migration corridor(s) for this species
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About the Yellow-billed Cuckoo
The yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) is a member of the cuckoo family. Common folk names for this bird in the southern United States are rain crow and storm crow. These likely refer to the bird's habit of calling on hot days, often presaging rain showers or thunderstorms. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kokkuzo, which means to call like a common cuckoo, and americanus means "of America".
Source: Wikipedia
Classification
- Scientific name
- Coccyzus americanus
- Family
- Cuckoos
- Order
- Cuculiformes
Similar species
Other members of the cuckoos family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.
- Black-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus erythropthalmus
- Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus
- Common Squirrel-Cuckoo Piaya cayana
- Dark-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus melacoryphus
- Greater Roadrunner Geococcyx californianus
- Groove-billed Ani Crotophaga sulcirostris
- Lesser Ground-Cuckoo Morococcyx erythropygus
- Lesser Roadrunner Geococcyx velox
- Mangrove Cuckoo Coccyzus minor
- Mexican Squirrel-Cuckoo Piaya mexicana
- Oriental Cuckoo Cuculus optatus
- Pheasant Cuckoo Dromococcyx phasianellus
Know when the Yellow-billed Cuckoo turns up near you
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