How big is a Lesser Cuckoo?

The Lesser Cuckoo is a small sized bird weighing about 47 g.

Where can you see a Lesser Cuckoo?

The Lesser Cuckoo occurs in 24 countries, including Japan, India, China, Taiwan and South Korea.

What birds look similar to a Lesser Cuckoo?

The Lesser Cuckoo is most easily confused with the African Cuckoo, the Himalayan Cuckoo and the Madagascar Cuckoo.

Is the Lesser Cuckoo endangered?

The Lesser Cuckoo is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Lesser Cuckoo

Cuculus poliocephalus

Cuckoos · Cuculiformes · Rare

The Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus) is a rare cuckoo found in 24 countries, weighing about 47 g. The lesser cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae.

Least ConcernRareEats invertebratesforest47 g

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 1 — Photo: christoph_moning · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 2 — Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom · CC BY 2.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 3 — Photo: Sun Jiao (Interaccoonale) · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 4 — Photo: Sun Jiao (Interaccoonale) · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 5 — Photo: Sun Jiao (Interaccoonale) · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 6 — Photo: Sun Jiao (Interaccoonale) · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 7 — Photo: Sun Jiao (Interaccoonale) · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 8 — Photo: christoph_moning · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 9 — Photo: christoph_moning · CC BY 4.0

Lesser Cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus), photo 10 — Photo: rohanmenzies · CC BY 4.0

About the Lesser Cuckoo

The lesser cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where it lives

Japan India China Taiwan South Korea Nepal Bhutan Hong Kong SAR China Sri Lanka Kenya Thailand Mongolia Russia Bangladesh Laos Vietnam Zimbabwe Tanzania Myanmar (Burma) Seychelles Malawi Pakistan

Recorded as a rare visitor in South Africa, Oman.

When to see it

Best months: April, May, June, July, with peak activity in May. It is a summer visitor species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

What does a Lesser Cuckoo look like?: The lesser cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae.
How big is a Lesser Cuckoo?: The Lesser Cuckoo is a small sized bird weighing about 47 g.
Where can you see a Lesser Cuckoo?: The Lesser Cuckoo occurs in 24 countries, including Japan, India, China, Taiwan and South Korea.
What birds look similar to a Lesser Cuckoo?: The Lesser Cuckoo is most easily confused with the African Cuckoo, the Himalayan Cuckoo and the Madagascar Cuckoo.
Is the Lesser Cuckoo endangered?: The Lesser Cuckoo is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the Lesser Cuckoo for real

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