Common Cuckoo vs Indian Cuckoo

Common Cuckoo

Cuculus canorus

Medium111 gForest

The common cuckoo is 32–34 centimetres (13–13 in) long from bill to tail, with a tail of 13–15 centimetres (5.1–5.9 in) and a wingspan of 55–60 centimetres (22–24 in). The legs are short. It has a greyish, slender body and long tail, similar to a sparrowhawk in flight, where the wingbeats are regular. During the breeding season, common cuckoos often settle on an open perch with drooped wings and raised tail. There is a rufous colour morph, which occurs occasionally in adult females but more often in juveniles.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by Christian Kahle · Uncertain · Schneverdingen, Germany · CC0

Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom · CC BY 2.0

Indian Cuckoo

Cuculus micropterus

Medium89 gForest

This is a medium-sized cuckoo with both sexes alike. It has grey upperparts while the underside has broad black barring. The tail is barred with a broad subterminal dark band and a white tip. Young birds have white markings on the crown and white chin and throat contrasting with a dark face. Juveniles are browner and have broad white tips to the head and wing feathers. The eye-ring is gray to yellow (a feature shared with the common hawk-cuckoo). The iris is light brown to reddish.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by Jairam Vijayan · Uncertain · Payyavoor, Kannur, Kerala, India · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Sandeep Gangadharan · CC BY 2.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Common Cuckoo and Indian Cuckoo.