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Song & Call Comparison
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Song & Call Comparison
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Song
Loud, far-carrying resonant call; deep musical notes audible impressively through dense tropical forest.
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Song
Soft, ventriloquial whistled phrase; clear pure notes given quietly and deceptively from dense tropical thicket.
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Geographic Range & Migration
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Conservation Status Comparison
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Conservation Status
Least Concern
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Least Concern
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
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Identification Tips — How to Tell Them Apart
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How to Tell Them Apart
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Plumage
Little Cuckoo: small; rich chestnut-rufous above; pale buff below; rufous tail; yellow bill; neotropical squirrel cuckoo group
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Plumage
Greater Roadrunner: boldly streaked brown above; white-cream below with dark streaks; long tail; shaggy crest; bare facial skin; fast runner
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About Each Bird (Descriptions)
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Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) — 27–32 cm. Brown above; white below; yellow lower mandible; rufous wing patches in flight; white-spotted tail. Migratory breeder in North America; winters in South America. Non-parasitic. Insectivore specialising in caterpillars and cicadas. Western population listed as Threatened.
Lesser Ground-cuckoo (Morococcyx erythropygus) — 28 cm. Brown above; chestnut rump; whitish underparts; bare blue orbital skin. Inhabits dry and semi-arid scrub from Mexico to Costa Rica. Non-parasitic; builds its own nest in low shrubs. Runs on the ground hunting large insects, lizards, and amphibians. Monotypic genus endemic to Mesoamerica.
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Related Comparisons
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More Birds in Family
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