Bird Guide

Dark-billed Cuckoo vs Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Dark-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus melacoryphus)

Dark-billed Cuckoo

Coccyzus melacoryphus

Small50 gWoodland

The dark-billed cuckoo is 25 to 28 cm (9.8 to 11.0 in) long, about half of which is the tail. Males weigh about 42 to 54 g (1.5 to 1.9 oz) and females about 50 to 66 g (1.8 to 2.3 oz). Males and females have the same plumage. They have a gray crown and nape and grayish brown upperparts. Their wings are a darker grayish brown with no rufous. The upper surface of their tail is brown; the underside of the central pair of feathers is brown with black tips, the next pair blackish with narrow white tips, and the rest black with wide white tips. Voice: The dark-billed cuckoo's song is variously described as "six to eight resonant, buzzy kazoo-like notes" and "a ventriloquial ga-ga-ga-go-go." Another vocalization is "a descending series of guttural notes" that may also be a song. It makes "a dry-sounding buzz...dddddrr" call.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Thomaz de Carvalho Callado · CC BY 4.0
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus)

Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Coccyzus americanus

Medium64 gForest

Adults have a long tail, brown above and black-and-white below, and a black curved bill with yellow especially on the lower mandible. The head and upper parts are brown and the underparts are white. There is a yellow ring around the eye. It shows cinnamon on the wings in flight. Juveniles are similar, but the black on the undertail is replaced by gray. The adults show no sexual dimorphism, and thus the males and females can't be told apart by plumage. Measurements: Length: 10.2-11.8 in (26–30 cm) Weight: 1.9-2.3 oz (55–65 g) Wingspan: 15.0-16.9 in (38–43 cm)

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Recorded by Ryan Douglas · Mount Airy, Frederick County, Maryland, United States · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: lwolfartist · CC BY 2.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Dark-billed Cuckoo and Yellow-billed Cuckoo.