Home › Volumes › Bird Homes › Open Nests in Trees, Bushes, and Vines
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Adult--Upper parts drab; wings mostly rufous; under parts whitish; outer tail feathers black and white; upper mandible black; lower one yellow except at tip, which is black. Length--12.20.
Breeding Range--Throughout the Eastern States.
The nests vary greatly both in size and construction; some are little more than a mere platform of sticks, with a leaf or two for lining, while others are fairly large nests, well lined with dry ferns, leaves, catkins, and skeleton leaves; they are always shallow and ragged. The usual situation is in a small tree, bush, or briar; of the trees I think the oak seems to be preferred, in some localities particularly. 2 to 5 very pale greenish-blue eggs are laid; they have no polish. Size-1.15 x .84.
That so dainty and trim a bird as the Yellow-billed Cuckoo appears to be should have such a slovenly nest is always a cause of surprise, but that the nest and its surroundings should be kept in such disorder and filth is still more extraordinary.
The young when hatched are entirely naked. In a few days blue pin-feathers appear; these remain in their envelops until the bird is completely covered. The day before the young leave their nest they present a remarkable appearance, more like porcupines than birds, as all the pin-feathers are long and sharply pointed; then comes the transformation, and in twenty-four hours the bird possesses a fine coat of beautiful soft feathers, with no pin-feathers visible; the tail is then about one inch and a half long. With the exception of the bill, which is blue, the young resemble the parent birds in colour. The period of incubation is about fourteen days. Eggs may be found from early June until about the first week in August. The eggs are in all probability not laid on consecutive days--how long the interval, is somewhat uncertain.